Edge Capital Group LLC Increases Stock Holdings in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Edge Capital Group LLC lifted its position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 1.7% in the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,228 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 53 shares during the quarter. Edge Capital Group LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $1,424,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of MA. VitalStone Financial LLC boosted its stake in Mastercard by 300.0% during the fourth quarter. VitalStone Financial LLC now owns 60 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 45 shares during the period. Westend Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Mastercard during the first quarter worth about $27,000. Palisade Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in Mastercard during the first quarter worth about $27,000. Scarborough Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Mastercard during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Mastercard during the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on shares of Mastercard from $500.00 to $526.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. William Blair raised shares of Mastercard to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. KeyCorp raised their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $490.00 to $515.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Susquehanna raised 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. Finally, Compass Point initiated coverage on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Wednesday, September 4th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $525.00 price objective for the company. 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 company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $512.08.

Insider Activity

In related news, major shareholder Foundation Mastercard sold 138,000 shares of Mastercard 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 transaction, the insider now directly owns 92,152,308 shares in the company, valued at approximately $41,762,504,462.52. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In related news, CMO Venkata R. Madabhushi sold 4,685 shares of Mastercard stock in a transaction on Friday, September 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $493.10, for a total value of $2,310,173.50. Following the transaction, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 17,118 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,440,885.80. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, major shareholder Foundation Mastercard sold 138,000 shares of Mastercard stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $453.19, for a total transaction of $62,540,220.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 92,152,308 shares in the company, 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 in the last ninety days. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Mastercard Stock Down 0.1 %

MA stock opened at $492.74 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 1.14, a quick 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 company’s 50 day moving average is $466.24 and its two-hundred day moving average is $461.03. The stock has a market cap of $458.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.17, a PEG ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 1.10.

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, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.51 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $6.96 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.85 billion. Mastercard had a net margin of 46.45% and a return on equity of 179.78%. Research analysts expect that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.29 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, October 9th. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.54%. Mastercard’s payout ratio is 20.99%.

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.