653 Shares in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) Bought by Apella Capital LLC

Apella Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 653 shares of the credit services provider's stock, valued at approximately $337,000.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of MA. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Mastercard during the 4th quarter worth $6,022,224,000. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in Mastercard by 65,631.5% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 8,225,637 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $4,508,636,000 after buying an additional 8,213,123 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in Mastercard during the 4th quarter worth $837,017,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC raised its position in Mastercard by 79,739.7% during the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,555,277 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $818,962,000 after buying an additional 1,553,329 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp raised its position in Mastercard by 15.2% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 9,149,181 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $4,817,684,000 after buying an additional 1,207,787 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.28% of the company's stock.

Mastercard Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MA opened at $584.76 on Friday. Mastercard Incorporated has a 52 week low of $428.86 and a 52 week high of $588.45. The stock has a market cap of $533.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.10, a PEG ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.05. The company's 50-day moving average price is $546.65 and its 200 day moving average price is $541.24. 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 (NYSE:MA - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The credit services provider reported $3.73 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 company had revenue of $7.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $7.12 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $3.31 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 14.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts forecast that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Sandra A. Arkell sold 150 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $569.45, for a total value of $85,417.50. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 3,555 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,024,394.75. This trade represents a 4.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, 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 transaction of $3,813,337.76. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 34,524 shares in the company, valued at $18,459,292.32. This represents a 17.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 23,207 shares of company stock valued at $12,664,529 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.09% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have commented on MA shares. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $660.00 to $670.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $630.00 to $655.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 27th. Monness Crespi & Hardt downgraded shares of Mastercard from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. KeyCorp upped their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $630.00 to $635.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Evercore ISI assumed coverage on shares of Mastercard in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. They issued an "in-line" rating and a $550.00 price target for the company. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Mastercard presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $610.00.

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.

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