Dearborn Partners LLC Sells 12,258 Shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Key Points

• Dearborn Partners LLC has reduced its holdings in Mastercard Incorporated by 14.5%, now owning 72,024 shares worth approximately $39.5 million.
• Mastercard has announced a quarterly dividend of $0.76 per share to be paid on August 8, following a payout ratio of 21.32%.
• The company's recent earnings report showed a 14.2% year-over-year revenue increase to $7.25 billion, topping analyst expectations.

Dearborn Partners LLC lowered its position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA - Free Report) by 14.5% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 72,024 shares of the credit services provider's stock after selling 12,258 shares during the quarter. Mastercard accounts for approximately 1.9% of Dearborn Partners LLC's holdings, making the stock its 11th biggest holding. Dearborn Partners LLC's holdings in Mastercard were worth $39,478,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Accredited Investors Inc. grew its position in Mastercard by 2.6% in the 1st quarter. Accredited Investors Inc. now owns 718 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $394,000 after purchasing an additional 18 shares during the last quarter. Wealthstream Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 2.9% during the 1st quarter. Wealthstream Advisors Inc. now owns 632 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $347,000 after purchasing an additional 18 shares in the last quarter. Phillips Wealth Planners LLC grew its stake in Mastercard by 1.8% in the 1st quarter. Phillips Wealth Planners LLC now owns 1,055 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $538,000 after buying an additional 19 shares during the last quarter. Alta Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in Mastercard by 3.6% in the 1st quarter. Alta Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 540 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $296,000 after purchasing an additional 19 shares during the last quarter. Finally, May Hill Capital LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 2.0% during the 1st quarter. May Hill Capital LLC now owns 986 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $540,000 after acquiring an additional 19 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.28% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Mastercard news, insider Raj Seshadri sold 1,100 shares of Mastercard stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $546.77, for a total transaction of $601,447.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 12,921 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,064,815.17. The trade was a 7.85% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider Craig Vosburg sold 14,051 shares of Mastercard stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $585.05, for a total value of $8,220,537.55. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 58,451 shares of the company's stock, valued at $34,196,757.55. The trade was a 19.38% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 38,753 shares of company stock worth $20,351,084 over the last quarter. 0.09% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Mastercard Stock Performance

MA traded down $6.74 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $559.73. The stock had a trading volume of 3,316,713 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,427,760. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $564.67 and its 200 day simple moving average is $551.39. Mastercard Incorporated has a 1 year low of $439.59 and a 1 year high of $594.71. The stock has a market cap of $510.31 billion, a PE ratio of 37.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.46 and a beta of 1.03. The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.41.

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

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on MA shares. Wolfe Research set a $655.00 target price on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Monday, June 23rd. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded shares of Mastercard from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Monday, July 14th. Monness Crespi & Hardt cut shares of Mastercard from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Friday. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Mastercard from $660.00 to $670.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 3rd. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-five have assigned a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Mastercard has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $615.33.

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.