Institute for Wealth Management LLC. Reduces Stake in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Institute for Wealth Management LLC. lowered its position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 0.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 10,132 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 40 shares during the period. Mastercard makes up approximately 0.7% of Institute for Wealth Management LLC.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 24th largest holding. Institute for Wealth Management LLC.’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $4,321,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. State Street Corp boosted its position in Mastercard by 3.9% in the first quarter. State Street Corp now owns 34,759,814 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $12,632,032,000 after buying an additional 1,303,477 shares during the last quarter. Morgan Stanley boosted its position in 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 in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Mastercard in the 4th quarter worth approximately $3,308,223,000. Northern Trust Corp boosted its position in Mastercard by 2.9% in the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 9,075,358 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $3,593,025,000 after purchasing an additional 251,516 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nuveen Asset Management LLC boosted its position in Mastercard by 3.9% in the 2nd quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC now owns 8,420,213 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $3,311,670,000 after purchasing an additional 318,077 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Mastercard

In other Mastercard news, insider Ajay Bhalla sold 98 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $439.52, for a total value of $43,072.96. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 6,235 shares in the company, valued at $2,740,407.20. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other Mastercard news, insider Ajay Bhalla sold 98 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $439.52, for a total value of $43,072.96. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 6,235 shares in the company, valued at $2,740,407.20. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, major shareholder Foundation Mastercard sold 111,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $457.15, for a total value of $50,743,650.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 97,432,308 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $44,541,179,602.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 148,728 shares of company stock valued at $68,483,403 over the last three months. 0.13% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have commented on MA shares. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on Mastercard from $480.00 to $490.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 1st. Raymond James increased their target price on Mastercard from $452.00 to $504.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 1st. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Mastercard from $490.00 to $530.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. Evercore ISI increased their target price on Mastercard from $530.00 to $545.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 26th. Finally, Mizuho reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $480.00 target price on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Wednesday, March 27th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Mastercard presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $490.23.

Mastercard Stock Down 0.2 %

Shares of Mastercard stock traded down $0.94 on Friday, reaching $453.76. 1,513,551 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,393,519. Mastercard Incorporated has a 1-year low of $357.85 and a 1-year high of $490.00. The company has a market cap of $423.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.75 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. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $471.75 and its 200-day moving average price is $433.36.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 31st. The credit services provider reported $3.18 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.08 by $0.10. Mastercard had a return on equity of 191.22% and a net margin of 44.60%. The business had revenue of $6.55 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.46 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.65 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.35 EPS for the current year.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 9th. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 9th will be issued a $0.66 dividend. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.58%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 8th. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 22.32%.

Mastercard 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.