Commonwealth Equity Services LLC Buys 11,607 Shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Commonwealth Equity Services LLC boosted its position in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 4.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 251,767 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 11,607 shares during the period. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $107,381,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in MA. Cypress Wealth Services LLC increased its position in Mastercard by 2.9% in the 4th quarter. Cypress Wealth Services LLC now owns 864 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $369,000 after acquiring an additional 24 shares during the period. Syntegra Private Wealth Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Mastercard by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Syntegra Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 1,996 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $851,000 after buying an additional 24 shares in the last quarter. TRUE Private Wealth Advisors raised its position in Mastercard by 2.4% in the fourth quarter. TRUE Private Wealth Advisors now owns 1,037 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $442,000 after acquiring an additional 24 shares in the last quarter. Indiana Trust & Investment Management CO increased its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 4.4% in the 4th quarter. Indiana Trust & Investment Management CO now owns 598 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $255,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Tufton Capital Management lifted its stake in shares of Mastercard by 4.5% in the fourth quarter. Tufton Capital Management now owns 604 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $258,000 after purchasing an additional 26 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MA has been the subject of a number of research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on Mastercard from $520.00 to $510.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on shares of Mastercard from $433.00 to $482.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 11th. William Blair restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Wednesday, January 31st. Susquehanna reiterated a “positive” rating and set a $535.00 target price on shares of Mastercard in a report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Finally, TD Cowen assumed coverage on Mastercard in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. They set a “buy” rating and a $545.00 price target for the company. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $493.55.

Mastercard Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:MA traded up $2.51 during trading on Friday, hitting $443.61. 3,711,502 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,472,272. Mastercard Incorporated has a one year low of $357.85 and a one year high of $490.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $413.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.26, a PEG ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a quick ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.86. The business’s fifty day moving average is $470.17 and its 200-day moving average is $437.44.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 1st. The credit services provider reported $3.31 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.22 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $6.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.34 billion. Mastercard had a net margin of 46.09% and a return on equity of 183.70%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.80 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.32 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. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 9th will be given a dividend of $0.66 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 8th. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.60%. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 20.99%.

Insider Transactions at Mastercard

In other Mastercard news, major shareholder Foundation Mastercard sold 200 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $487.25, for a total value of $97,450.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 97,543,308 shares in the company, valued at $47,527,976,823. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, CMO Venkata R. Madabhushi sold 16,037 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $475.94, for a total value of $7,632,649.78. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief marketing officer now owns 12,255 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,832,644.70. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, major shareholder Foundation Mastercard sold 200 shares of Mastercard stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $487.25, for a total transaction of $97,450.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 97,543,308 shares in the company, valued at $47,527,976,823. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 583,088 shares of company stock valued at $266,873,978. Company 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.