Mount Yale Investment Advisors LLC Reduces Stock Position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Mount Yale Investment Advisors LLC decreased its holdings in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 2.1% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,129 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 88 shares during the period. Mount Yale Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $1,822,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Mastercard by 0.4% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 75,584,606 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $36,399,279,000 after buying an additional 330,872 shares in the last quarter. Capital International Investors boosted its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 3.3% in the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 21,041,685 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $8,974,478,000 after purchasing an additional 676,452 shares during the period. Capital Research Global Investors grew its stake in Mastercard by 0.3% in 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 in the last quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board increased its holdings in Mastercard by 2.7% during the 2nd 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 period. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. raised its position in Mastercard by 0.9% during the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 4,250,760 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $1,875,266,000 after purchasing an additional 38,380 shares in the last quarter. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently commented on MA shares. TD Cowen raised their price target on Mastercard from $532.00 to $533.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of Mastercard from $528.00 to $538.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Susquehanna increased their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $535.00 to $540.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $530.00 to $536.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, August 5th. Finally, William Blair raised Mastercard to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-one have assigned a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Mastercard presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $512.08.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Mastercard news, major shareholder Foundation Mastercard sold 138,000 shares of the company’s 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 sale, the insider now directly owns 92,152,308 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $41,762,504,462.52. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other Mastercard news, major shareholder Foundation Mastercard sold 138,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the insider now directly owns 92,152,308 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $41,762,504,462.52. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO J. Mehra Sachin sold 13,439 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $455.00, for a total transaction of $6,114,745.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 27,304 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,423,320. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 474,124 shares of company stock valued at $219,855,929 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Mastercard Stock Performance

Shares of MA stock opened at $492.74 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.95, a current ratio of 1.14 and a quick ratio of 1.14. The business has a fifty day moving average of $466.24 and a 200 day moving average of $461.03. The firm has a market capitalization of $458.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 1.10. Mastercard Incorporated has a 1 year low of $359.77 and a 1 year high of $501.80.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The credit services provider reported $3.59 EPS 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 firm had revenue of $6.96 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.85 billion. As a group, research analysts expect that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.29 earnings per share for the current year.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 8th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, October 9th will be issued a $0.66 dividend. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.54%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, October 9th. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 20.99%.

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.