Marietta Investment Partners LLC Grows Stock Position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Marietta Investment Partners LLC raised its holdings in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 0.3% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 22,456 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 60 shares during the period. Mastercard comprises 2.2% of Marietta Investment Partners LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 10th biggest holding. Marietta Investment Partners LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $9,907,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in Mastercard by 0.4% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 75,584,606 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $36,399,279,000 after acquiring an additional 330,872 shares during the last quarter. Capital International Investors grew its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 3.3% during the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 21,041,685 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $8,974,478,000 after purchasing an additional 676,452 shares during the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors grew its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 0.3% during the first quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 13,651,904 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $6,574,347,000 after purchasing an additional 43,881 shares during the last quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board grew its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 2.7% during the second quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 4,327,168 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $1,908,973,000 after purchasing an additional 113,238 shares during the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 0.9% during the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 4,250,760 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $1,875,266,000 after purchasing an additional 38,380 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MA has been the topic of several research reports. Evercore ISI reduced their price target on Mastercard from $540.00 to $525.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, June 25th. TD Cowen boosted their price target on Mastercard from $532.00 to $533.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. William Blair upgraded Mastercard to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Bank of America upped their target price on Mastercard from $480.00 to $509.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 17th. Finally, Citigroup upped their target price on Mastercard from $528.00 to $538.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-one have assigned a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Mastercard has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $512.08.

Mastercard Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MA opened at $492.74 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.95. Mastercard Incorporated has a twelve month low of $359.77 and a twelve month high of $501.80. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $466.24 and its 200-day moving average is $461.03. The firm has a market capitalization of $458.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.17, a PEG ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 1.10.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The credit services provider reported $3.59 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.51 by $0.08. Mastercard had a return on equity of 179.78% and a net margin of 46.45%. The company had revenue of $6.96 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.85 billion. Sell-side analysts forecast that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.29 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 8th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, October 9th will be given a dividend of $0.66 per share. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.54%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, October 9th. Mastercard’s payout ratio is 20.99%.

Insider Transactions at Mastercard

In related news, major shareholder Foundation Mastercard sold 138,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $453.19, for a total value of $62,540,220.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 92,152,308 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $41,762,504,462.52. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In related news, CFO J. Mehra Sachin sold 13,439 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $455.00, for a total value of $6,114,745.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 27,304 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,423,320. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, major shareholder Foundation Mastercard sold 138,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $453.19, for a total value of $62,540,220.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 92,152,308 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $41,762,504,462.52. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 474,124 shares of company stock valued at $219,855,929 over the last ninety days. 0.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.