Intech Investment Management LLC Cuts Stake in Mastercard Incorporated $MA

Intech Investment Management LLC cut its holdings in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 14.1% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 23,603 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 3,866 shares during the period. Intech Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $13,426,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in Mastercard by 1.2% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 79,431,340 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $45,181,341,000 after acquiring an additional 955,533 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Mastercard by 2.8% in the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 19,760,552 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $11,062,509,000 after purchasing an additional 542,841 shares in the last quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 55,868.1% during the 2nd quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 13,421,148 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $7,541,880,000 after purchasing an additional 13,397,168 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Mastercard during the second quarter valued at about $6,725,317,000. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 25.6% in the second quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 6,372,404 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $3,580,909,000 after purchasing an additional 1,299,977 shares during the last quarter. 97.28% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Mastercard Stock Up 1.0%

Shares of MA opened at $514.55 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $458.88 billion, a PE ratio of 31.15, a P/E/G ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 0.83. The business has a fifty day moving average of $546.14 and a 200 day moving average of $559.97. Mastercard Incorporated has a 52-week low of $465.59 and a 52-week high of $601.77. The company has a quick ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.36.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 29th. The credit services provider reported $4.76 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.24 by $0.52. The business had revenue of $8.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.80 billion. Mastercard had a net margin of 45.65% and a return on equity of 203.92%. The business’s revenue was up 17.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $3.82 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 EPS for the current year.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 8th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 9th will be paid a $0.87 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 9th. This represents a $3.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.7%. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 21.07%.

Key Headlines Impacting Mastercard

Here are the key news stories impacting Mastercard this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Major product rollout — MetaMask Card goes broadly live in the U.S., letting users pay with crypto anywhere Mastercard is accepted and keeping assets self-custodial; the launch includes on-chain rewards and availability in New York, which strengthens Mastercard’s position in crypto payments. Mastercard Brings MetaMask Crypto Payments to US Shoppers
• Positive Sentiment: Wider MetaMask partnership rollout reported across U.S. issuances and card programs — multiple outlets note the MetaMask–Mastercard card and debit-like product expansion, reinforcing expected volume and fee capture from crypto-native spend. MetaMask expands Mastercard crypto card across the US
• Positive Sentiment: Strategic hiring for crypto and DeFi — Mastercard is recruiting a Director of Crypto Flows to lead stablecoin card launches and DeFi integrations, signaling deeper commitment to digital-asset revenue streams. This hiring was flagged across industry outlets and suggests ongoing product investment rather than a beta experiment. Mastercard Seeks Director of Crypto Flows as Payments Giant Deepens Digital Asset Push
• Positive Sentiment: Regional growth partnership — Mastercard signed a deal to accelerate digital payments in Tanzania, supporting geographic expansion and payment volume growth in underpenetrated markets. (Mastercard, Tananian firm partner to fast-track the transformation of digital payment)
• Neutral Sentiment: Minor divestiture — Mastercard sold SessionM to Capillary Technologies for $20 million; small proceeds and focus on core payments/crypto strategy may be viewed as portfolio simplification rather than material to earnings. Capillary Technologies acquires SessionM from Mastercard for $20 million
• Neutral Sentiment: Increased investor attention — Zacks highlights strong retail interest in MA stock, which can amplify intraday moves but doesn’t signal fundamental changes by itself. Investors Heavily Search Mastercard Incorporated (MA): Here is What You Need to Know
• Negative Sentiment: Competitive pressure — European payment apps are explicitly targeting Visa/Mastercard dominance in retail payments; new local rails or fintechs could pressure merchant fees or market share in certain regions over time. European payment app targets Visa, Mastercard dominance with retail-payments push
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst/industry skepticism — A critical report (Citrini) warned of potential issues for Mastercard if crypto traction stalls; timing of hires and expansion invites scrutiny about whether crypto efforts will be accretive or costly. Mastercard Hires for Crypto Just as Citrini Warns It Could Be Obsolete

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently commented on MA. Macquarie Infrastructure increased their price target on Mastercard from $660.00 to $675.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Cantor Fitzgerald raised Mastercard to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 27th. TD Cowen raised their target price on shares of Mastercard from $668.00 to $671.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 30th. Truist Financial set a $611.00 price target on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Tuesday, February 10th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $665.00 to $678.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have issued a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $669.27.

About Mastercard

Mastercard Incorporated is a global payments technology company that operates a network connecting consumers, financial institutions, merchants, governments and businesses in more than 200 countries and territories. The company facilitates electronic payments and transaction processing for credit, debit and prepaid card products carrying the Mastercard brand, while also providing a range of payment-related services to issuers, acquirers and merchants. Its technology and network enable authorization, clearing and settlement of payments and support a broad set of use cases including point-of-sale, e-commerce and mobile payments.

Beyond core transaction processing, Mastercard offers a suite of value-added services such as fraud and risk management, identity and authentication tools, tokenization and digital wallet support, cross-border and commercial payment solutions, and data analytics and consulting services for merchants and financial partners.