Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) Holdings Lowered by Loring Wolcott & Coolidge Fiduciary Advisors LLP MA

Loring Wolcott & Coolidge Fiduciary Advisors LLP MA reduced its position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 3.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,551,162 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 52,521 shares during the period. Mastercard accounts for about 6.9% of Loring Wolcott & Coolidge Fiduciary Advisors LLP MA’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 2nd biggest position. Loring Wolcott & Coolidge Fiduciary Advisors LLP MA owned about 0.17% of Mastercard worth $696,829,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA purchased a new stake in shares of Mastercard in the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Mastercard during the fourth quarter worth approximately $33,000. Barometer Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in Mastercard during the third quarter worth approximately $36,000. Thomas J. Herzfeld Advisors Inc. increased its stake in Mastercard by 661.5% during the third quarter. Thomas J. Herzfeld Advisors Inc. now owns 99 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 86 shares during the last quarter. Finally, JCIC Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in Mastercard by 34.0% during the fourth quarter. JCIC Asset Management Inc. now owns 134 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $57,000 after acquiring an additional 34 shares during the last quarter. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on MA shares. Mizuho reissued a “buy” rating and set a $480.00 price objective on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Wednesday, March 27th. Susquehanna reaffirmed a “positive” rating and set a $535.00 target price on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Wednesday, April 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Mastercard from $490.00 to $530.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. TD Cowen assumed coverage on Mastercard in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. They set a “buy” rating and a $545.00 target price on the stock. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on Mastercard from $433.00 to $482.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 11th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Mastercard has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $490.23.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Mastercard news, insider Craig Vosburg sold 13,542 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $460.06, for a total transaction of $6,230,132.52. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 46,491 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $21,388,649.46. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, CEO Michael Miebach sold 7,851 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $475.92, for a total transaction of $3,736,447.92. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 47,640 shares in the company, valued at approximately $22,672,828.80. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Craig Vosburg sold 13,542 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $460.06, for a total value of $6,230,132.52. Following the sale, the insider now owns 46,491 shares in the company, valued at $21,388,649.46. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 148,630 shares of company stock valued at $68,440,330. Company insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

Mastercard Stock Up 0.3 %

Shares of MA traded up $1.56 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $456.95. 2,157,134 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,405,142. Mastercard Incorporated has a 1 year low of $357.85 and a 1 year high of $490.00. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $471.66 and its 200-day moving average is $434.80. The company has a current ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.06. The stock has a market capitalization of $426.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 1.08.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, January 31st. The credit services provider reported $3.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.08 by $0.10. Mastercard had a return on equity of 191.22% and a net margin of 44.60%. The firm had revenue of $6.55 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.46 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.65 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.35 earnings per share for the current year.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 9th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 9th will be given a dividend of $0.66 per share. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.58%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 8th. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio is currently 22.32%.

About Mastercard

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.