Rathbones Group PLC Acquires 35,854 Shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Rathbones Group PLC increased its position in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA - Free Report) by 6.9% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 551,999 shares of the credit services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 35,854 shares during the period. Mastercard comprises about 1.3% of Rathbones Group PLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 17th largest position. Rathbones Group PLC owned about 0.06% of Mastercard worth $243,520,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Mastercard in the 4th quarter valued at $4,595,559,000. Swedbank AB acquired a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the first quarter worth approximately $660,652,000. PineStone Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Mastercard by 145.6% in the second quarter. PineStone Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,777,468 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $784,148,000 after acquiring an additional 1,053,616 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 75,253,734 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $32,096,470,000 after acquiring an additional 742,076 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Capital International Investors grew its position in Mastercard by 3.3% during the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 21,041,685 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $8,974,478,000 after acquiring an additional 676,452 shares during the last quarter. 97.28% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MA has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Evercore ISI reduced their price objective on Mastercard from $540.00 to $525.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, June 25th. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $530.00 to $536.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, August 5th. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of Mastercard from $528.00 to $538.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Compass Point began coverage on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Wednesday, September 4th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $525.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Argus raised Mastercard to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-one have given a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $510.88.

Mastercard Stock Up 0.3 %

Shares of MA stock traded up $1.25 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $493.36. 2,204,789 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,441,218. The company has a market capitalization of $458.63 billion, a PE ratio of 39.22, a PEG ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 1.10. Mastercard Incorporated has a 52 week low of $359.77 and a 52 week high of $496.85. The business has a 50 day moving average of $460.67 and a two-hundred day moving average of $460.18. The company has a current ratio of 1.14, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.95.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The credit services provider reported $3.59 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.51 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $6.96 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.85 billion. Mastercard had a return on equity of 179.78% and a net margin of 46.45%. Analysts anticipate that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.29 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 9th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, July 9th were issued a $0.66 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, July 9th. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.54%. Mastercard's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 20.99%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Mastercard news, major shareholder Foundation Mastercard sold 107,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $445.98, for a total value of $47,719,860.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 92,891,308 shares in the company, valued at $41,427,665,541.84. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, insider Craig Vosburg sold 9,028 shares of Mastercard stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $451.06, for a total transaction of $4,072,169.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 58,940 shares in the company, valued at $26,585,476.40. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, major shareholder Foundation Mastercard sold 107,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $445.98, for a total value of $47,719,860.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 92,891,308 shares in the company, valued at approximately $41,427,665,541.84. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 827,467 shares of company stock worth $379,595,815. 0.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Mastercard Company Profile

Mastercard Incorporated, a technology company, provides transaction processing and other payment-related products and services in the United States and internationally. The company offers integrated products and value-added services for account holders, merchants, financial institutions, digital partners, businesses, governments, and other organizations, such as programs that enable issuers to provide consumers with credits to defer payments; payment products and solutions that allow its customers to access funds in deposit and other accounts; prepaid programs services; and commercial credit, debit, and prepaid payment products and solutions.