Ascent Group LLC Has $13.47 Million Stake in Mastercard Incorporated $MA

Key Points

• Ascent Group LLC reduced its stake in Mastercard by 10.4%, owning 23,978 shares valued at approximately $13.47 million as of the end of the second quarter.
• Mastercard's recent quarterly earnings surpassed expectations, with an EPS of $4.15 and revenue of $8.13 billion, marking a year-over-year revenue increase of 16.8%.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.76 to shareholders of record, resulting in an annualized yield of 0.5%.

Ascent Group LLC decreased its position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA - Free Report) by 10.4% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 23,978 shares of the credit services provider's stock after selling 2,771 shares during the period. Ascent Group LLC's holdings in Mastercard were worth $13,474,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Family Legacy Financial Solutions LLC bought a new stake in Mastercard in the second quarter valued at $26,000. Flaharty Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in Mastercard in the first quarter valued at $27,000. Keystone Global Partners LLC bought a new stake in Mastercard in the first quarter valued at $31,000. Hughes Financial Services LLC bought a new stake in Mastercard in the first quarter valued at $34,000. Finally, 1 North Wealth Services LLC bought a new stake in Mastercard in the first quarter valued at $44,000. 97.28% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Mastercard Trading Up 0.6%

Shares of MA stock opened at $581.08 on Friday. Mastercard Incorporated has a 52-week low of $465.59 and a 52-week high of $601.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.41, a quick ratio of 1.16 and a current ratio of 1.16. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $580.26 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $561.67. The company has a market capitalization of $525.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.18, a PEG ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 0.97.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 31st. The credit services provider reported $4.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $4.05 by $0.10. Mastercard had a net margin of 44.93% and a return on equity of 200.01%. The business had revenue of $8.13 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.95 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $3.50 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 16.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 7th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, October 9th will be paid a $0.76 dividend. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 9th. Mastercard's payout ratio is presently 20.50%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on MA shares. Truist Financial decreased their target price on shares of Mastercard from $640.00 to $612.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 17th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Mastercard from $625.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their target price on shares of Mastercard from $650.00 to $656.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, August 1st. TD Cowen reissued a "buy" rating and set a $645.00 target price on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Monday, August 11th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft started coverage on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Thursday, July 17th. They set a "buy" rating and a $650.00 target price for the company. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-five have assigned a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Mastercard presently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $630.89.

Insider Transactions at Mastercard

In other Mastercard news, Director Julius Genachowski sold 312 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $570.67, for a total value of $178,049.04. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 8,469 shares in the company, valued at $4,833,004.23. The trade was a 3.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO J. Mehra Sachin sold 17,816 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $586.89, for a total transaction of $10,456,032.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 31,234 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,330,922.26. The trade was a 36.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 35,391 shares of company stock worth $20,836,514. Corporate insiders own 0.09% of the company's stock.

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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