Arkadios Wealth Advisors raised its stake in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA - Free Report) by 27.3% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 14,017 shares of the credit services provider's stock after buying an additional 3,006 shares during the quarter. Arkadios Wealth Advisors' holdings in Mastercard were worth $7,683,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.
Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. FMR LLC lifted its stake in shares of Mastercard by 4.3% in the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 22,267,937 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $11,725,627,000 after acquiring an additional 912,856 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Mastercard by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 18,657,792 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $9,800,202,000 after purchasing an additional 282,739 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp lifted its position in Mastercard by 15.2% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 9,149,181 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $4,817,684,000 after purchasing an additional 1,207,787 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake 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 valued at $4,508,636,000 after purchasing an additional 8,213,123 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nuveen Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Mastercard by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC now owns 7,610,333 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $4,007,373,000 after buying an additional 71,874 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.28% of the company's stock.
Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth
Several research analysts recently weighed in on MA shares. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Friday. Evercore ISI began coverage on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. They issued an "in-line" rating and a $550.00 price objective on the stock. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of Mastercard from $650.00 to $652.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, May 5th. Macquarie cut their target price on shares of Mastercard from $645.00 to $610.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Wolfe Research set a $655.00 price target on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Monday, June 23rd. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-five have given 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 a consensus price target of $615.33.
Check Out Our Latest Report on MA
Insider Transactions at Mastercard
In related news, insider Craig Vosburg sold 14,051 shares of Mastercard stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $585.05, for a total value of $8,220,537.55. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 58,451 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $34,196,757.55. The trade was a 19.38% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Linda Pistecchia Kirkpatrick sold 959 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, June 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $572.86, for a total transaction of $549,372.74. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 25,540 shares of the company's stock, valued at $14,630,844.40. This represents a 3.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 38,753 shares of company stock worth $20,351,084. Corporate insiders own 0.09% of the company's stock.
Mastercard Stock Down 1.2%
Shares of Mastercard stock traded down $6.74 on Friday, hitting $559.73. 3,316,713 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,427,760. The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.41. Mastercard Incorporated has a 12-month low of $439.59 and a 12-month high of $594.71. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $564.58 and a 200 day moving average price of $551.95. The company has a market cap of $510.31 billion, a PE ratio of 37.74, a PEG ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 1.03.
Mastercard (NYSE:MA - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The credit services provider reported $4.15 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.05 by $0.10. Mastercard had a return on equity of 200.01% and a net margin of 44.93%. The company had revenue of $8.13 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.95 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $3.50 EPS. The business's revenue was up 16.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 earnings per share for the current year.
Mastercard Announces Dividend
The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 8th. Investors of record on Wednesday, July 9th will be issued a $0.76 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 9th. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.5%. Mastercard's dividend payout ratio is currently 21.32%.
Mastercard Profile
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Free Report)
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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