Aptus Capital Advisors LLC Acquires 3,962 Shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Aptus Capital Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA - Free Report) by 58.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 10,695 shares of the credit services provider's stock after buying an additional 3,962 shares during the period. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC's holdings in Mastercard were worth $5,632,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Accredited Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the 4th quarter worth $217,000. 4WEALTH Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the fourth quarter valued at $373,000. Gallagher Fiduciary Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Mastercard by 16.1% in the 4th quarter. Gallagher Fiduciary Advisors LLC now owns 1,411 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $743,000 after purchasing an additional 196 shares during the period. Pennington Partners & CO. LLC purchased a new position in Mastercard in the 4th quarter worth about $494,000. Finally, Cypress Advisory Group LLC acquired a new stake in Mastercard during the 4th quarter worth about $1,147,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.28% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Edward Grunde Mclaughlin sold 7,132 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $534.68, for a total value of $3,813,337.76. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 34,524 shares of the company's stock, valued at $18,459,292.32. This represents a 17.12 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Michael Miebach sold 15,775 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $550.16, for a total value of $8,678,774.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 84,871 shares in the company, valued at approximately $46,692,629.36. This represents a 15.67 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Mastercard Stock Performance

NYSE:MA traded up $7.12 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $566.11. 2,493,698 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,608,299. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $532.04 and a two-hundred day moving average of $532.35. The firm has a market capitalization of $516.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.06. Mastercard Incorporated has a 12 month low of $428.86 and a 12 month high of $582.23.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The credit services provider reported $3.73 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.57 by $0.16. Mastercard had a net margin of 45.71% and a return on equity of 188.47%. The business had revenue of $7.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.12 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $3.31 earnings per share. Mastercard's revenue was up 14.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 9th will be given a dividend of $0.76 per share. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.54%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 9th. Mastercard's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 21.32%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of Mastercard from $650.00 to $652.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday. Macquarie cut their target price on shares of Mastercard from $645.00 to $610.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Susquehanna raised their target price on Mastercard from $605.00 to $670.00 and gave the stock a "positive" rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Seaport Res Ptn lowered Mastercard from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, DZ Bank upgraded Mastercard from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $620.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $606.25.

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.