Clarkston Capital Partners LLC Sells 36,842 Shares of Mastercard Incorporated $MA

Clarkston Capital Partners LLC trimmed its holdings in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA - Free Report) by 89.4% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 4,362 shares of the credit services provider's stock after selling 36,842 shares during the quarter. Clarkston Capital Partners LLC's holdings in Mastercard were worth $2,180,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Riggs Asset Managment Co. Inc. lifted its position in Mastercard by 20.0% during the second quarter. Riggs Asset Managment Co. Inc. now owns 108 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $61,000 after purchasing an additional 18 shares during the period. Abacus Planning Group Inc. grew its position in Mastercard by 3.3% in the 4th quarter. Abacus Planning Group Inc. now owns 590 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $337,000 after purchasing an additional 19 shares during the period. Thomasville National Bank grew its position in Mastercard by 4.1% in the 4th quarter. Thomasville National Bank now owns 479 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $273,000 after purchasing an additional 19 shares during the period. Castle Rock Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Mastercard by 2.8% during the 4th quarter. Castle Rock Wealth Management LLC now owns 695 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $387,000 after buying an additional 19 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Resurgent Financial Advisors LLC raised its stake in Mastercard by 1.2% during the 3rd quarter. Resurgent Financial Advisors LLC now owns 1,597 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $908,000 after buying an additional 19 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.28% of the company's stock.

Mastercard Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MA opened at $530.52 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.56, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 0.98. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $507.37 and a 200 day moving average price of $514.85. Mastercard Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $464.52 and a fifty-two week high of $601.77. The firm has a market cap of $468.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.70, a P/E/G ratio of 1.66 and a beta of 0.73.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The credit services provider reported $4.60 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.26 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $3.73 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 15.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Mastercard Incorporated will post 19.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 7th. Investors of record on Thursday, July 9th will be paid a dividend of $0.87 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend 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 currently 20.14%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have issued reports on MA shares. Truist Financial dropped their target price on Mastercard from $590.00 to $561.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, May 12th. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Mastercard from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Raymond James Financial set a $609.00 price objective on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Dbs Bank raised shares of Mastercard to a "moderate buy" rating in a report on Friday, March 27th. Finally, Loop Capital reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $631.00 target price on shares of Mastercard in a report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have issued a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $653.92.

Insider Activity

In other Mastercard news, insider Raj Seshadri sold 4,828 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $525.00, for a total transaction of $2,534,700.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 16,429 shares in the company, valued at $8,625,225. The trade was a 22.71% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Sandra A. Arkell sold 200 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, July 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $540.00, for a total value of $108,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 3,322 shares in the company, valued at $1,793,880. This trade represents a 5.68% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold a total of 7,005 shares of company stock worth $3,689,976 over the last quarter. 0.09% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Key Stories Impacting Mastercard

Here are the key news stories impacting Mastercard this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Mastercard announced new enhancements to its virtual card platform, including stronger security controls, embedded payments capabilities, and single-API access. This supports growth in B2B payments and could improve adoption of Mastercard’s commercial payment tools. Mastercard Expands Virtual Card Platform with New Security Controls, Embedded Payments Network and Single API Access
• Positive Sentiment: Mastercard is being highlighted by commentators like Jim Cramer as a “tech company in bank clothing,” reinforcing the market’s view of MA as a high-margin payments compounder with durable growth characteristics. Mastercard NYSE: MA: Jim Cramer’s “Tech Company in Bank Clothing”
• Positive Sentiment: Wall Street expectations are building for Mastercard’s upcoming earnings report, with analysts looking for another earnings beat and continued profit growth. That can support the stock if results and guidance confirm strong consumer spending and transaction volume trends. MasterCard (MA) Reports Next Week: Wall Street Expects Earnings Growth
• Neutral Sentiment: Mastercard is also expanding into the creator economy through a new debit card partnership, which adds another growth avenue but is not yet large enough to move fundamentals on its own. Mastercard Sees the Next Payments Customer in the Creator Economy
• Neutral Sentiment: Several recent articles and market commentary have focused on Mastercard’s valuation, long-term moat, and competitive positioning versus peers like Affirm. These pieces are more about sentiment than immediate catalysts, though they contribute to the mixed tone around the stock. Mastercard vs. Affirm: Which Fintech Stock Has More Room to Run?
• Negative Sentiment: Some coverage suggests Mastercard may be less attractive than faster-growing fintech names such as Affirm on a valuation and upside basis, which could temper investor enthusiasm. Mastercard vs. Affirm: Which Fintech Stock Has More Room to Run?
• Negative Sentiment: There is also ongoing speculation about a possible sale of a majority stake in Mastercard’s UK payments subsidiary Vocalink, which adds uncertainty around a key infrastructure asset. Is Mastercard (MA) Cheap Or Fully Valued On Vocalink Sale Talk?

About Mastercard

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.