Belpointe Asset Management LLC Sells 794 Shares of Mastercard Incorporated $MA

Key Points

• Belpointe Asset Management LLC has reduced its stake in Mastercard by 8.6%, now holding 8,454 shares valued at approximately $4.63 million.
• Mastercard's quarterly earnings exceeded expectations, reporting $4.15 EPS on revenues of $8.13 billion, representing a 16.8% year-over-year increase.
• In recent insider trading, executives sold shares amounting to $32.6 million, as company insiders hold only 0.09% of the stock.

Belpointe Asset Management LLC trimmed its stake in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA - Free Report) by 8.6% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 8,454 shares of the credit services provider's stock after selling 794 shares during the quarter. Belpointe Asset Management LLC's holdings in Mastercard were worth $4,634,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Brighton Jones LLC grew its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 42.3% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 6,824 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $3,594,000 after buying an additional 2,028 shares during the last quarter. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG lifted its stake in shares of Mastercard by 11.8% during the 4th quarter. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG now owns 70,472 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $37,108,000 after buying an additional 7,452 shares in the last quarter. Mascagni Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the fourth quarter worth $73,000. Trustco Bank Corp N Y purchased a new stake in shares of Mastercard in the fourth quarter worth about $211,000. Finally, Hudson Bay Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of Mastercard in the fourth quarter worth $3,992,000. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have issued reports on MA. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded shares of Mastercard from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, July 14th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft began coverage on shares of Mastercard in a report on Thursday, July 17th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $650.00 price objective for the company. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $639.00 to $661.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, August 1st. KeyCorp boosted their price target on shares of Mastercard from $635.00 to $660.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their target price on Mastercard from $650.00 to $656.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-four have assigned a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $626.54.

Mastercard Stock Down 1.4%

MA stock traded down $7.98 on Friday, reaching $580.75. 2,242,737 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,763,323. Mastercard Incorporated has a one year low of $465.59 and a one year high of $601.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.41, a current ratio of 1.16 and a quick ratio of 1.16. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $574.32 and a 200-day simple moving average of $558.24. The company has a market cap of $525.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 0.99.

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

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 8th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 9th were issued a $0.76 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, July 9th. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.5%. Mastercard's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 20.50%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Craig Vosburg sold 9,428 shares of Mastercard stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $353.05, for a total value of $3,328,555.40. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 58,451 shares in the company, valued at $20,636,125.55. The trade was a 13.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Linda Pistecchia Kirkpatrick sold 958 shares of Mastercard stock in a transaction on Monday, June 30th. The stock was 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 of the company's stock, valued at $13,229,440. The trade was a 3.90% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 49,094 shares of company stock worth $26,521,861. 0.09% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.