Berkeley Inc Trims Stock Position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Berkeley Inc cut its stake in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA - Free Report) by 50.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 11,662 shares of the credit services provider's stock after selling 11,658 shares during the period. Mastercard makes up approximately 3.2% of Berkeley Inc's holdings, making the stock its 10th largest holding. Berkeley Inc's holdings in Mastercard were worth $6,141,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Brighton Jones LLC increased its holdings in Mastercard by 42.3% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 6,824 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $3,594,000 after purchasing an additional 2,028 shares during the last quarter. Novare Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Mastercard during the 4th quarter worth approximately $203,000. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management increased its holdings in Mastercard by 21.7% during the 4th quarter. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management now owns 4,932 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $2,597,000 after purchasing an additional 878 shares during the last quarter. TI Trust Inc. purchased a new stake in Mastercard during the 4th quarter worth approximately $211,000. Finally, Tennessee Valley Asset Management Partners increased its holdings in Mastercard by 15.6% during the 4th quarter. Tennessee Valley Asset Management Partners now owns 673 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $354,000 after purchasing an additional 91 shares during the last quarter. 97.28% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Mastercard Trading Up 0.2%

Shares of NYSE MA traded up $1.05 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $575.60. The stock had a trading volume of 1,701,113 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,607,926. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $542.49 and its 200 day simple moving average is $538.84. The firm has a market cap of $524.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 41.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.06. Mastercard Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $428.86 and a fifty-two week high of $588.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 1.03.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The credit services provider reported $3.73 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.57 by $0.16. The company had revenue of $7.25 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $7.12 billion. Mastercard had a return on equity of 188.47% and a net margin of 45.71%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 14.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $3.31 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on MA shares. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Mastercard from $585.00 to $625.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Barclays boosted their price target on Mastercard from $595.00 to $650.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Mastercard from $590.00 to $610.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on Mastercard from $630.00 to $655.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Susquehanna boosted their price objective on Mastercard from $605.00 to $670.00 and gave the company a "positive" rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $608.57.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Sandra A. Arkell sold 150 shares of Mastercard stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $569.45, for a total transaction of $85,417.50. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 3,555 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,024,394.75. The trade was a 4.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Michael Miebach sold 15,775 shares of Mastercard stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $550.16, for a total value of $8,678,774.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 84,871 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $46,692,629.36. This trade represents a 15.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 23,207 shares of company stock valued at $12,664,529 over the last three months. Company insiders own 0.10% of the company's stock.

About Mastercard

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.