Mastercard Incorporated $MA Shares Bought by Balefire LLC

Key Points

• Balefire LLC enhanced its ownership in Mastercard by 103.9%, acquiring an additional 1,240 shares and bringing its total to 2,434 shares valued at approximately $1,368,000.
• Several hedge funds have also increased their stakes in Mastercard, reflecting a strong institutional ownership of 97.28% in the company.
• Mastercard reported a quarterly earnings per share (EPS) of $4.15, exceeding expectations and reflecting a 16.8% year-over-year revenue increase.

Balefire LLC lifted its holdings in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA - Free Report) by 103.9% in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 2,434 shares of the credit services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 1,240 shares during the quarter. Balefire LLC's holdings in Mastercard were worth $1,368,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Ethos Financial Group LLC raised its stake in Mastercard by 19.5% in the 1st quarter. Ethos Financial Group LLC now owns 3,174 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $1,683,000 after acquiring an additional 518 shares during the last quarter. Fortis Advisors LLC raised its stake in Mastercard by 9.4% in the 1st quarter. Fortis Advisors LLC now owns 871 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $477,000 after acquiring an additional 75 shares during the last quarter. Canandaigua National Trust Co of Florida raised its stake in Mastercard by 36.4% in the 1st quarter. Canandaigua National Trust Co of Florida now owns 693 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $380,000 after acquiring an additional 185 shares during the last quarter. Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in Mastercard by 18.0% in the 1st quarter. Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 6,870 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $3,766,000 after acquiring an additional 1,047 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Focus Partners Wealth raised its stake in shares of Mastercard by 0.5% during the 1st quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 607,702 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $333,095,000 after buying an additional 3,001 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.28% of the company's stock.

Mastercard Stock Performance

NYSE MA traded down $2.17 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $583.88. 6,744,713 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,280,804. The company has a market cap of $527.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 0.99. Mastercard Incorporated has a 12-month low of $465.59 and a 12-month high of $601.77. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $577.23 and a 200 day moving average of $559.09. The company has a quick ratio of 1.16, a current ratio of 1.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.41.

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

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 7th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 9th will be paid a dividend of $0.76 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, October 9th. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.5%. Mastercard's payout ratio is 20.50%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have weighed in on MA. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on Mastercard from $639.00 to $661.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft started coverage on Mastercard in a research note on Thursday, July 17th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $650.00 price target for the company. Jefferies Financial Group restated a "buy" rating on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Friday, June 6th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Mastercard from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, July 18th. Finally, Truist Financial cut their price target on Mastercard from $640.00 to $612.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 17th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-four have assigned a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Mastercard presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $630.89.

Insider Transactions at Mastercard

In related news, Director Julius Genachowski sold 312 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $570.67, for a total value of $178,049.04. Following the sale, the director owned 8,469 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,833,004.23. This represents a 3.55% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Linda Pistecchia Kirkpatrick sold 958 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $560.00, for a total value of $536,480.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 23,624 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,229,440. The trade was a 3.90% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 38,717 shares of company stock worth $22,684,831 over the last quarter. Insiders own 0.09% of the company's stock.

Mastercard 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.