Mastercard Incorporated $MA Shares Bought by Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund

Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund grew its stake in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 9.7% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 78,712 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after buying an additional 6,937 shares during the quarter. Mastercard accounts for approximately 0.5% of Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund’s portfolio, making the stock its 27th biggest position. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $39,329,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Border to Coast Pensions Partnership Ltd boosted its holdings in Mastercard by 7.3% in the first quarter. Border to Coast Pensions Partnership Ltd now owns 139,844 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $70,089,000 after purchasing an additional 9,504 shares in the last quarter. Murphy Middleton Hinkle & Parker Inc. acquired a new stake in Mastercard during the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,113,000. Assetmark Inc. lifted its position in shares of Mastercard by 4.5% during the 4th quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 229,299 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $130,902,000 after buying an additional 9,795 shares during the last quarter. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Mastercard by 396.3% during the 4th quarter. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. now owns 46,145 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $26,343,000 after buying an additional 36,848 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Marble Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of Mastercard in the 4th quarter valued at $1,328,000. 97.28% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Mastercard Stock Performance

Shares of MA opened at $535.47 on Thursday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $502.03 and its 200-day simple moving average is $516.24. The firm has a market cap of $473.14 billion, a PE ratio of 30.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 0.73. Mastercard Incorporated has a 12-month low of $464.52 and a 12-month high of $601.77. The company has a current ratio of 0.98, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.56.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The credit services provider reported $4.60 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.41 by $0.19. Mastercard had a net margin of 45.88% and a return on equity of 212.96%. The firm had revenue of $8.40 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.26 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.73 EPS. Mastercard’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that Mastercard Incorporated will post 19.62 EPS for the current year.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 7th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 9th will be issued a $0.87 dividend. This represents a $3.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 9th. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio is presently 20.14%.

Mastercard News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Mastercard this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Baird raised its price target on Mastercard to $680 from $660 and kept an Outperform rating, citing expectations for revenue growth to accelerate as comparisons ease. Baird Raises PT on Mastercard (MA) Stock
• Positive Sentiment: Barclays initiated coverage with an Overweight rating and a $640 price target, reinforcing Wall Street confidence in Mastercard’s long-term earnings power after a sector reset. Barclays Initiates Mastercard (MA) Coverage at Overweight
• Positive Sentiment: Several partnerships and network developments show Mastercard’s payment rails remain widely used, including RAKBANK strengthening its relationship with Mastercard and Kraken rolling out a Mastercard crypto debit card in the UK and Europe. RAKBANK and Mastercard strengthen strategic relationship to drive payments innovation Kraken rolls out Mastercard crypto debit card in UK and Europe
• Neutral Sentiment: The House passed a bill that would restrict how payment networks classify firearms retailers, which could create compliance changes for Mastercard but is not yet final law. Congress Vote: The House has passed H.R. 1181 – Protecting Privacy in Purchases Act
• Neutral Sentiment: Mastercard-related commentary also pointed to ongoing value in the business model, with one analysis saying “the moat remains intact,” while another article noted Mastercard stock looks richer after recent gains and faces pressure from regulation and new competition. The Moat Remains Intact Mastercard (MA) Stock Looks Overvalued On Regulatory Pressure And New Competition

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Raj Seshadri sold 1,977 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $529.73, for a total value of $1,047,276.21. Following the transaction, the insider owned 16,429 shares in the company, valued at $8,702,934.17. The trade was a 10.74% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Sandra A. Arkell sold 200 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $540.00, for a total value of $108,000.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 3,322 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,793,880. This represents a 5.68% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 7,005 shares of company stock valued at $3,689,976 in the last quarter. Insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently commented on MA. Susquehanna dropped their target price on shares of Mastercard from $670.00 to $665.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Truist Financial reduced their price target on shares of Mastercard from $590.00 to $561.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, May 12th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Mastercard from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Friday, April 24th. UBS Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Mastercard in a report on Thursday, June 25th. Finally, TD Cowen cut their target price on Mastercard from $671.00 to $664.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-one have issued a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $653.78.

Mastercard Profile

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.