Donoghue Forlines LLC Invests $2.35 Million in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Key Points

• Donoghue Forlines LLC has acquired 4,288 shares of Mastercard, valued at approximately $2.35 million, making it the firm's 25th largest holding.
• Several institutional investors, including Vanguard Group Inc. and Northern Trust Corp, have recently increased their stakes in Mastercard, reflecting strong institutional interest.
• Mastercard's latest quarterly earnings showed an EPS of $4.15, exceeding expectations and demonstrating a year-over-year revenue growth of 16.8%.

Donoghue Forlines LLC bought a new position in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 4,288 shares of the credit services provider's stock, valued at approximately $2,350,000. Mastercard accounts for about 0.7% of Donoghue Forlines LLC's holdings, making the stock its 25th largest holding.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Whalerock Point Partners LLC grew its position in shares of Mastercard by 1.3% during the fourth quarter. Whalerock Point Partners LLC now owns 14,678 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $7,729,000 after acquiring an additional 185 shares during the last quarter. Fortis Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Mastercard by 9.4% during the first quarter. Fortis Advisors LLC now owns 871 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $477,000 after acquiring an additional 75 shares during the last quarter. Canandaigua National Trust Co of Florida grew its position in shares of Mastercard by 36.4% during the first quarter. Canandaigua National Trust Co of Florida now owns 693 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $380,000 after acquiring an additional 185 shares during the last quarter. Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Mastercard by 18.0% during the first quarter. Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 6,870 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $3,766,000 after acquiring an additional 1,047 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Baldwin Investment Management LLC grew its position in shares of Mastercard by 5.7% during the fourth quarter. Baldwin Investment Management LLC now owns 1,731 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $911,000 after acquiring an additional 93 shares during the last quarter. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the company. Wall Street Zen raised Mastercard from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, July 18th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Mastercard from $625.00 to $650.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, August 1st. Macquarie reduced their target price on Mastercard from $645.00 to $610.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Mastercard in a report on Friday, August 1st. Finally, UBS Group raised their target price on Mastercard from $660.00 to $670.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 3rd. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-five have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Mastercard has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $615.33.

Mastercard Trading Up 0.1%

Shares of NYSE MA traded up $0.29 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $573.88. The stock had a trading volume of 2,593,766 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,825,981. The company has a market capitalization of $518.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.70, a PEG ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 1.03. Mastercard Incorporated has a 1-year low of $454.89 and a 1-year high of $594.71. The company has a quick ratio of 1.16, a current ratio of 1.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.41. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $563.76 and a 200 day moving average price of $553.84.

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 the consensus estimate of $4.05 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $8.13 billion for 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 company's revenue was up 16.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $3.50 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 earnings per share for the current year.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 8th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 9th were given a $0.76 dividend. 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 dividend payout ratio is presently 20.50%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Mastercard news, insider Linda Pistecchia Kirkpatrick sold 959 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $572.86, for a total value of $549,372.74. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 25,540 shares of the company's stock, valued at $14,630,844.40. This represents a 3.62% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Craig Vosburg sold 14,051 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 completion of the sale, the insider owned 58,451 shares of the company's stock, valued at $34,196,757.55. This trade represents a 19.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 38,453 shares of company stock valued at $20,178,667. Company insiders own 0.09% 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.