Assenagon Asset Management S.A. Sells 648,236 Shares of Mastercard Incorporated $MA

Key Points

• Assenagon Asset Management cut its Mastercard stake by 74.9% in the first quarter, selling 648,236 shares and leaving it with 217,287 shares valued at about $108.6 million.
• Mastercard shares were up 1.3% to $494.20, and the stock remains well below its 52-week high of $601.77; institutional investors still own 97.28% of the company.
• The company recently topped earnings expectations, reporting $4.60 EPS on $8.40 billion in revenue, while also announcing a quarterly dividend of $0.87 per share to be paid on August 7.

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. reduced its position in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA - Free Report) by 74.9% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 217,287 shares of the credit services provider's stock after selling 648,236 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A.'s holdings in Mastercard were worth $108,570,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its stake in Mastercard by 42.3% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 6,824 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $3,594,000 after purchasing an additional 2,028 shares during the last quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. grew its stake in shares of Mastercard by 8.5% during the second quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. now owns 2,548 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $1,432,000 after buying an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Betterment LLC grew its stake in shares of Mastercard by 6.5% during the second quarter. Betterment LLC now owns 947 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $532,000 after buying an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 35.8% during the second quarter. Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC now owns 677,204 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $380,548,000 after buying an additional 178,387 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Darwin Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Mastercard during the second quarter worth $431,000. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Mastercard Trading Up 1.3%

Shares of MA stock opened at $494.20 on Thursday. Mastercard Incorporated has a 1-year low of $464.52 and a 1-year high of $601.77. The company has a current ratio of 0.98, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.56. The stock has a market cap of $436.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.60, a PEG ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 0.74. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $497.88 and a 200-day moving average of $520.38.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The credit services provider reported $4.60 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $4.41 by $0.19. Mastercard had a return on equity of 212.96% and a net margin of 45.88%.The company had revenue of $8.40 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.26 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $3.73 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 15.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Mastercard Incorporated will post 19.6 earnings per share for the current year.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 7th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 9th will be given a $0.87 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 9th. This represents a $3.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%. Mastercard's payout ratio is 20.14%.

Mastercard News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Mastercard this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Mastercard announced a new partnership with SAIT to expand cybersecurity training for small businesses, non-profits, and social enterprises in Western Canada, reinforcing its brand and community investment while potentially supporting future digital payment adoption. Article: New SAIT and Mastercard partnership targets cybersecurity gaps facing Canada's small businesses and non-profits
• Positive Sentiment: Mastercard continues to be viewed as a high-margin, long-runway payments leader, with articles highlighting its recurring toll-like revenue model and durable position in the global payments duopoly. Article: Mastercard vs. PayPal: Which Financial Stock Is a Better Buy in 2026?
• Positive Sentiment: Mastercard is also expanding digital B2B payments through a new HSBC mobile virtual card solution, which could help deepen transaction volume in a growing enterprise payments segment. Article: HSBC and Mastercard accelerate growth of digital B2B payments with launch of mobile virtual card solution
• Neutral Sentiment: Coverage comparing Mastercard with Visa and PayPal generally reinforces that Mastercard remains a strong business, but these pieces were more comparative than catalyst-driven and do not point to a major near-term change in fundamentals. Article: Mastercard vs. Visa: What Comparing Revenue Trends Tells Investors
• Neutral Sentiment: Mastercard’s “Agent Pay” push and broader AI-commerce messaging suggest continued product innovation, but the immediate financial impact is still unclear. Article: Mastercard CMO Jill Kramer unveils 'Agent Pay' to secure AI commerce
• Negative Sentiment: Fresh EU pressure tied to digital euro plans could increase competitive and regulatory risk for Mastercard in Europe if policymakers favor public or European payment alternatives. Article: Mastercard (MA) Faces Fresh EU Pressure As Digital Euro Plans Advance

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on MA shares. Dbs Bank raised Mastercard to a "moderate buy" rating in a report on Friday, March 27th. Truist Financial lowered their target price on Mastercard from $590.00 to $561.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, May 12th. UBS Group dropped their target price on Mastercard from $650.00 to $640.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Susquehanna cut their price target on Mastercard from $670.00 to $665.00 and set a "positive" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane upgraded Mastercard from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $600.00 price target on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 19th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have given a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $656.08.

Mastercard Company Profile

Mastercard Incorporated is a global payments technology company that operates a network connecting consumers, financial institutions, merchants, governments and businesses in more than 200 countries and territories. The company facilitates electronic payments and transaction processing for credit, debit and prepaid card products carrying the Mastercard brand, while also providing a range of payment-related services to issuers, acquirers and merchants. Its technology and network enable authorization, clearing and settlement of payments and support a broad set of use cases including point-of-sale, e-commerce and mobile payments.

Beyond core transaction processing, Mastercard offers a suite of value-added services such as fraud and risk management, identity and authentication tools, tokenization and digital wallet support, cross-border and commercial payment solutions, and data analytics and consulting services for merchants and financial partners.

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