Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) Shares Bought by Sterling Capital Management LLC

Sterling Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA - Free Report) by 5.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 34,743 shares of the credit services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 1,881 shares during the period. Sterling Capital Management LLC's holdings in Mastercard were worth $18,295,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. NewSquare Capital LLC purchased a new position in Mastercard in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Marshall Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Mastercard in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Mastercard in the fourth quarter worth approximately $32,000. Truvestments Capital LLC raised its stake in Mastercard by 62.5% in the 4th quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC now owns 65 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CoreFirst Bank & Trust purchased a new position in Mastercard in the 4th quarter valued at $37,000. 97.28% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Mastercard Stock Down 0.6 %

Shares of MA traded down $2.94 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $514.44. The stock had a trading volume of 1,210,787 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,607,469. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 1.03. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $540.75 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $528.58. The company has a market cap of $469.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.04, a PEG ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.06. Mastercard Incorporated has a 1-year low of $428.86 and a 1-year high of $582.23.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The credit services provider reported $3.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.71 by $0.11. Mastercard had a return on equity of 188.47% and a net margin of 45.71%. Equities research analysts expect that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 earnings per share for the current year.

Mastercard announced that its board has approved a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, December 17th that allows the company to repurchase $12.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the credit services provider to buy up to 2.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 9th will be given a $0.76 dividend. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.59%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 9th. Mastercard's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 21.89%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Michael Miebach sold 15,775 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $550.16, for a total transaction of $8,678,774.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 84,871 shares of the company's stock, valued at $46,692,629.36. This trade represents a 15.67 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Edward Grunde Mclaughlin sold 7,132 shares of Mastercard stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $534.68, for a total transaction of $3,813,337.76. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 34,524 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,459,292.32. The trade was a 17.12 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.10% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MA has been the topic of several research reports. Raymond James reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $640.00 price target (up from $614.00) on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Citigroup upped their price target on Mastercard from $584.00 to $650.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $633.00 price objective on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Seaport Res Ptn cut Mastercard from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, William Blair reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Mastercard in a report on Friday, January 31st. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $607.96.

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.