Lansforsakringar Fondforvaltning AB publ Acquires New Stake in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Lansforsakringar Fondforvaltning AB publ acquired a new stake in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 273,511 shares of the credit services provider's stock, valued at approximately $144,023,000. Mastercard makes up 1.7% of Lansforsakringar Fondforvaltning AB publ's portfolio, making the stock its 11th largest position.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its position in shares of Mastercard by 42.3% in the fourth 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 in the last quarter. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management boosted its stake in shares of Mastercard by 21.7% during the fourth quarter. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management now owns 4,932 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $2,597,000 after purchasing an additional 878 shares during the period. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA bought a new position in shares of Mastercard in the fourth quarter worth about $83,644,000. Lebenthal Global Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Mastercard by 10.4% during the 4th quarter. Lebenthal Global Advisors LLC now owns 1,686 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $888,000 after buying an additional 159 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Berkshire Bank increased its position in shares of Mastercard by 55.0% during the fourth quarter. Berkshire Bank now owns 2,784 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $1,466,000 after acquiring an additional 988 shares during the period. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Mastercard Stock Performance

Shares of Mastercard stock traded up $5.49 during trading on Friday, hitting $583.27. 4,581,021 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,615,372. The stock has a market capitalization of $531.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.99, a PEG ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.06. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $543.16 and a 200-day simple moving average of $539.17. Mastercard Incorporated has a 52-week low of $428.86 and a 52-week high of $588.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 1.03.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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. The business had revenue of $7.25 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $7.12 billion. Mastercard had a return on equity of 188.47% and a net margin of 45.71%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 14.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $3.31 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the company. Macquarie cut their price target on Mastercard from $645.00 to $610.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $633.00 price target on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Susquehanna boosted their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $605.00 to $670.00 and gave the stock a "positive" rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Barclays increased their target price on Mastercard from $595.00 to $650.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, DZ Bank raised Mastercard from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $620.00 price target 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 assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $608.57.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Mastercard news, insider Edward Grunde Mclaughlin sold 7,132 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $534.68, for a total value of $3,813,337.76. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 34,524 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $18,459,292.32. This trade represents a 17.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Michael Miebach sold 15,775 shares of the 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 84,871 shares in the company, valued at $46,692,629.36. This trade represents a 15.67% 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 worth $12,664,529. Corporate insiders own 0.10% of the company's stock.

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.