HF Advisory Group LLC Purchases 242 Shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

HF Advisory Group LLC grew its position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 8.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 3,032 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 242 shares during the quarter. HF Advisory Group LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $1,293,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in MA. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Mastercard in the 4th quarter worth approximately $3,308,223,000. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 111,819.8% in the 4th 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 purchasing an additional 5,977,885 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 43,445.1% in the 4th quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 2,936,684 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $1,252,525,000 after purchasing an additional 2,929,940 shares during the period. Morgan Stanley boosted its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 17.7% in the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 15,843,692 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $5,509,328,000 after purchasing an additional 2,385,640 shares during the period. Finally, Barclays PLC boosted its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 145.7% in the 2nd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 2,960,242 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $1,164,263,000 after purchasing an additional 1,755,483 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the company. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on Mastercard from $525.00 to $545.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday. Raymond James lifted their target price on Mastercard from $452.00 to $504.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 1st. Monness Crespi & Hardt started coverage on Mastercard in a report on Wednesday, December 20th. They issued a “neutral” rating for the company. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on Mastercard from $530.00 to $545.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 26th. Finally, TD Cowen started coverage on Mastercard in a report on Thursday, April 11th. They set a “buy” rating and a $545.00 price objective for the company. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Mastercard has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $490.23.

Mastercard Stock Down 0.1 %

Shares of MA stock traded down $0.43 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $459.73. The stock had a trading volume of 309,014 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,382,877. The firm has a market capitalization of $428.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.74 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.06, a current ratio of 1.17 and a quick ratio of 1.17. Mastercard Incorporated has a 12-month low of $357.85 and a 12-month high of $490.00. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $471.83 and its two-hundred day moving average is $433.21.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 31st. The credit services provider reported $3.18 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.08 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $6.55 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.46 billion. Mastercard had a return on equity of 191.22% and a net margin of 44.60%. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.65 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 9th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 9th will be given a $0.66 dividend. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.57%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 8th. Mastercard’s payout ratio is 22.32%.

Insider Transactions at Mastercard

In other news, major shareholder Foundation Mastercard sold 200 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $487.25, for a total value of $97,450.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 97,543,308 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $47,527,976,823. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, insider Ajay Bhalla sold 98 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $439.52, for a total transaction of $43,072.96. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 6,235 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,740,407.20. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, major shareholder Foundation Mastercard sold 200 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $487.25, for a total value of $97,450.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 97,543,308 shares in the company, valued at approximately $47,527,976,823. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 41,728 shares of company stock valued at $19,479,753. Corporate insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

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.