True North Advisors LLC Cuts Stock Position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

True North Advisors LLC cut its holdings in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 10.2% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,276 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 145 shares during the quarter. True North Advisors LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $630,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. VitalStone Financial LLC lifted its stake in Mastercard by 300.0% in the fourth quarter. VitalStone Financial LLC now owns 60 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares during the last quarter. Westend Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Mastercard in the 1st quarter valued at about $27,000. Palisade Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in Mastercard during the first quarter valued at about $27,000. Scarborough Advisors LLC bought a new position in Mastercard during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Mastercard in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Institutional investors own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Susquehanna lifted 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. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on Mastercard from $500.00 to $526.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Compass Point started coverage on Mastercard in a report on Wednesday, September 4th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $525.00 target price for the company. BMO Capital Markets reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $520.00 price objective on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Wednesday, August 14th. Finally, Citigroup boosted their price objective on Mastercard from $528.00 to $538.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nineteen have issued a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Mastercard currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $517.22.

Mastercard Trading Up 1.2 %

NYSE MA opened at $497.06 on Wednesday. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $478.54 and its 200-day moving average price is $462.40. The company has a current ratio of 1.14, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.95. The stock has a market cap of $462.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.51, a P/E/G ratio of 1.96 and a beta of 1.10. Mastercard Incorporated has a 12 month low of $359.77 and a 12 month high of $501.80.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 31st. The credit services provider reported $3.59 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.51 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $6.96 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.85 billion. Mastercard had a net margin of 46.45% and a return on equity of 179.78%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.29 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 8th. Investors of record on Wednesday, October 9th will be given a $0.66 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, October 9th. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.53%. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 20.99%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Mastercard news, major shareholder Foundation Mastercard sold 119,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $468.46, for a total value of $55,746,740.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 92,033,308 shares in the company, valued at approximately $43,113,923,465.68. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other Mastercard news, major shareholder Foundation Mastercard sold 119,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $468.46, for a total value of $55,746,740.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 92,033,308 shares in the company, valued at $43,113,923,465.68. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO J. Mehra Sachin sold 13,439 shares of Mastercard stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $455.00, for a total transaction of $6,114,745.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 27,304 shares in the company, valued at $12,423,320. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 340,809 shares of company stock worth $159,610,703. 0.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Mastercard 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.