Cozad Asset Management Inc. Sells 2,326 Shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Key Points

• Cozad Asset Management Inc. reduced its holdings in Mastercard by 8.8% in the first quarter, now owning shares worth approximately $13.18 million.
• Insiders, including Director Julius Genachowski, have sold shares recently, with a total of 38,753 shares worth around $20.35 million sold over the last three months.
• Mastercard's stock is currently trading around $568.58, with analysts giving it a consensus target price of $612.90 and ratings indicating a strong buy outlook.

Cozad Asset Management Inc. lessened its holdings in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA - Free Report) by 8.8% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 24,044 shares of the credit services provider's stock after selling 2,326 shares during the quarter. Mastercard comprises approximately 1.3% of Cozad Asset Management Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 14th biggest holding. Cozad Asset Management Inc.'s holdings in Mastercard were worth $13,179,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Canopy Partners LLC lifted its position in Mastercard by 0.9% during the first quarter. Canopy Partners LLC now owns 4,607 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $2,525,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares during the last quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC lifted its position in Mastercard by 181.3% during the first quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC now owns 90 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $49,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. Kirtland Hills Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Mastercard by 2.5% during the first quarter. Kirtland Hills Capital Management LLC now owns 8,956 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $4,633,000 after purchasing an additional 222 shares during the last quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in Mastercard by 1.1% during the first quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 71,346 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $39,106,000 after purchasing an additional 755 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Meeder Advisory Services Inc. lifted its position in Mastercard by 7.9% during the first quarter. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. now owns 17,442 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $9,560,000 after purchasing an additional 1,276 shares during the last quarter. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Raj Seshadri sold 1,100 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $546.77, for a total value of $601,447.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 12,921 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,064,815.17. This represents a 7.85% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Craig Vosburg sold 9,428 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $353.05, for a total transaction 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. This represents a 13.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 38,753 shares of company stock valued at $20,351,084. 0.09% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Mastercard Stock Performance

MA traded down $8.58 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $557.89. 1,976,356 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,823,143. The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.81. The firm has a market capitalization of $508.64 billion, a PE ratio of 39.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.42 and a beta of 1.02. The company's 50-day moving average is $564.67 and its 200 day moving average is $551.39. Mastercard Incorporated has a 52 week low of $439.59 and a 52 week high of $594.71.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The credit services provider reported $4.15 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.05 by $0.10. Mastercard had a net margin of 45.21% and a return on equity of 196.87%. The firm had revenue of $8.13 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.95 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.50 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 16.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts expect that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 EPS for the current year.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 8th. Investors of record on Wednesday, July 9th will be issued a $0.76 dividend. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, July 9th. Mastercard's dividend payout ratio is currently 21.32%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Mastercard from $639.00 to $661.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday. Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $650.00 to $652.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, May 5th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft started 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. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Friday, June 6th. Finally, Truist Financial decreased their target price on shares of Mastercard from $640.00 to $612.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 17th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-five have given a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $615.33.

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.