Capital Investment Counsel LLC Buys 426 Shares of Mastercard Incorporated $MA

Key Points

• Capital Investment Counsel LLC increased its stake in Mastercard Incorporated by 2.9%, owning 14,917 shares worth approximately $8.18 million following a purchase of 426 additional shares.
• Mastercard reported $4.15 EPS for the last quarter, exceeding analysts' expectations, with revenues of $8.13 billion, reflecting a 16.8% year-over-year increase.
• Several equity analysts have reissued ratings on Mastercard, with a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $617.93.

Capital Investment Counsel LLC grew its holdings in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA - Free Report) by 2.9% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 14,917 shares of the credit services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 426 shares during the period. Mastercard accounts for approximately 1.4% of Capital Investment Counsel LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 21st biggest holding. Capital Investment Counsel LLC's holdings in Mastercard were worth $8,176,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its position in shares of 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 in the last quarter. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG increased its position in shares of Mastercard by 11.8% during the fourth quarter. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG now owns 70,472 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $37,108,000 after acquiring an additional 7,452 shares in the last quarter. Mascagni Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Mastercard in the 4th quarter worth about $73,000. Trustco Bank Corp N Y bought a new position in Mastercard in the 4th quarter valued at about $211,000. Finally, Aptus Capital Advisors LLC lifted its position in Mastercard by 58.8% in the 4th quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC now owns 10,695 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $5,632,000 after acquiring an additional 3,962 shares in the last quarter. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Mastercard

In other Mastercard news, insider Craig Vosburg sold 9,428 shares of the business's stock in a transaction 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 of the company's stock, valued at $20,636,125.55. The trade was a 13.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CFO J. Mehra Sachin sold 17,263 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $591.00, for a total transaction of $10,202,433.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 31,234 shares of the company's stock, valued at $18,459,294. This represents a 35.60% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 59,481 shares of company stock worth $32,616,595 in the last three months. 0.09% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently issued reports on MA. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Mastercard from $625.00 to $650.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, August 1st. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Friday, August 1st. KeyCorp increased their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $635.00 to $660.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Mastercard from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, July 18th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft began coverage on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Thursday, July 17th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $650.00 price objective for the company. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-four have assigned a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Mastercard presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $626.54.

Mastercard Stock Performance

Mastercard stock traded up $1.59 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $594.87. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,653,726 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,779,682. Mastercard Incorporated has a 12-month low of $465.59 and a 12-month high of $601.77. The company has a market capitalization of $537.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.11, a PEG ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 0.99. 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 firm's fifty day moving average price is $570.99 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $557.28.

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 in the previous year, the business earned $3.50 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 8th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 9th were issued a dividend of $0.76 per share. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, July 9th. Mastercard's payout ratio is currently 20.50%.

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.