1,065,980 Shares in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) Acquired by Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH

Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH acquired a new position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 1,065,980 shares of the credit services provider's stock, valued at approximately $561,313,000. Mastercard makes up approximately 1.1% of Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH's investment portfolio, making the stock its 11th biggest holding. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH owned approximately 0.12% of Mastercard at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of MA. Brighton Jones LLC raised its position in Mastercard by 42.3% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 6,824 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $3,594,000 after buying an additional 2,028 shares during the last quarter. Accel Wealth Management raised its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 9.5% during the fourth quarter. Accel Wealth Management now owns 632 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $333,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. CFS Investment Advisory Services LLC raised its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 14.9% during the fourth quarter. CFS Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 1,016 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $535,000 after purchasing an additional 132 shares during the last quarter. Stewardship Advisors LLC lifted its position in Mastercard by 12.6% during the fourth quarter. Stewardship Advisors LLC now owns 956 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $503,000 after purchasing an additional 107 shares during the period. Finally, Moody Lynn & Lieberson LLC boosted its holdings in Mastercard by 8.4% in the fourth quarter. Moody Lynn & Lieberson LLC now owns 82,221 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $43,295,000 after purchasing an additional 6,373 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 97.28% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Sandra A. Arkell sold 150 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $580.00, for a total value of $87,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 3,255 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,887,900. This trade represents a 4.41% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Edward Grunde Mclaughlin sold 7,132 shares of Mastercard stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $534.68, for a total transaction of $3,813,337.76. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 34,524 shares of the company's stock, valued at $18,459,292.32. This represents a 17.12% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 23,207 shares of company stock valued at $12,664,529. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on MA shares. William Blair reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Barclays upped their price objective on Mastercard from $595.00 to $650.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Monness Crespi & Hardt cut Mastercard from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on Mastercard from $630.00 to $655.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $618.00 to $665.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $608.57.

Mastercard Price Performance

MA traded up $1.44 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $577.36. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,347,757 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,605,808. The stock has a market cap of $526.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.57, a P/E/G ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.06. The business's 50-day moving average price is $542.49 and its 200-day moving average price is $538.84. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68. Mastercard Incorporated has a 12 month low of $428.86 and a 12 month high of $588.45.

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, beating the consensus estimate of $3.57 by $0.16. Mastercard had a net margin of 45.71% and a return on equity of 188.47%. The firm had revenue of $7.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $7.12 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $3.31 EPS. The business's revenue was up 14.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.