Occidental Asset Management LLC Takes Position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Occidental Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 511 shares of the credit services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $201,000.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Mastercard in the 4th quarter worth about $3,308,223,000. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 111,819.8% in the fourth quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 5,983,231 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $2,080,549,000 after buying an additional 5,977,885 shares during the period. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Mastercard by 241.1% during the 1st quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 4,791,626 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $507,830,000 after acquiring an additional 3,386,762 shares during the last quarter. Morgan Stanley boosted its holdings in Mastercard by 17.7% during the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 15,843,692 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $5,509,328,000 after acquiring an additional 2,385,640 shares during the period. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its position in Mastercard by 9.1% in the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 27,027,189 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $9,398,165,000 after acquiring an additional 2,247,291 shares during the last quarter. 74.94% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on MA. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Mastercard from $440.00 to $443.00 in a research note on Friday, July 28th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $460.00 to $475.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Mastercard from $442.00 to $510.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 22nd. Mizuho reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $435.00 price target on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Tuesday, August 29th. Finally, 888 reissued a “reiterates” rating on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Friday, June 30th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $442.83.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Ajay Bhalla sold 4,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $413.88, for a total transaction of $1,655,520.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 6,235 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,580,541.80. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In other news, CFO J. Mehra Sachin sold 10,838 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $394.38, for a total value of $4,274,290.44. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 20,707 shares in the company, valued at $8,166,426.66. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Ajay Bhalla sold 4,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $413.88, for a total transaction of $1,655,520.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 6,235 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,580,541.80. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 415,267 shares of company stock valued at $164,793,283. Insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

Mastercard Stock Up 0.7 %

Mastercard stock opened at $417.13 on Tuesday. Mastercard Incorporated has a 1-year low of $276.87 and a 1-year high of $418.60. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $401.97 and a 200-day moving average price of $381.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.57, a current ratio of 1.13 and a quick ratio of 1.13. The stock has a market capitalization of $393.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.09, a PEG ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 1.10.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 27th. The credit services provider reported $2.89 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.84 by $0.05. Mastercard had a return on equity of 178.10% and a net margin of 43.37%. The business had revenue of $6.30 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.18 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.56 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 14.5% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that Mastercard Incorporated will post 12.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 7th were paid a dividend of $0.57 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 6th. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.55%. Mastercard’s payout ratio is 21.37%.

Mastercard Company Profile

Mastercard Incorporated, a technology company, provides transaction processing and other payment-related products and services in the United States and internationally. It facilitates the processing of payment transactions, including authorization, clearing, and settlement, as well as delivers other payment-related products and services.