Ethic Inc. Grows Stake in Mastercard Incorporated $MA

Key Points

• Ethic Inc. increased its stake in Mastercard by 5.6% during Q1, owning 90,844 shares worth about $49.8 million, making it the firm's 11th largest holding.
• Mastercard's stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" from analysts, with a current average price target of $615.33 and five analysts rating the stock as a hold.
• The company reported a quarterly EPS of $4.15, exceeding estimates, with a year-over-year revenue increase of 16.8% to $8.13 billion.

Ethic Inc. increased its stake in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA - Free Report) by 5.6% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 90,844 shares of the credit services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 4,810 shares during the period. Mastercard comprises approximately 1.0% of Ethic Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 11th largest holding. Ethic Inc.'s holdings in Mastercard were worth $49,829,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Whalerock Point Partners LLC grew its position in 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 buying an additional 185 shares in the last quarter. Fortis Advisors LLC grew its position in 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 buying an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Canandaigua National Trust Co of Florida grew its position in 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 buying an additional 185 shares in the last quarter. Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in 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 buying an additional 1,047 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Baldwin Investment Management LLC grew its position in 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 buying an additional 93 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 97.28% of the company's stock.

Mastercard Stock Performance

Shares of Mastercard stock traded up $1.6290 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $585.7690. 2,333,968 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,808,627. Mastercard Incorporated has a 12 month low of $461.90 and a 12 month high of $594.71. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $563.30 and a 200 day simple moving average of $554.81. 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 company has a market capitalization of $529.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.50, a P/E/G ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 1.03.

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

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Activity at Mastercard

In other Mastercard news, insider Linda Pistecchia Kirkpatrick sold 958 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, June 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $560.00, for a total transaction of $536,480.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 23,624 shares of the company's stock, valued at $13,229,440. The trade was a 3.90% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Raj Seshadri sold 1,100 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, June 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $546.77, for a total transaction of $601,447.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 12,921 shares in the company, valued at $7,064,815.17. The trade was a 7.85% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 38,453 shares of company stock worth $20,178,667. 0.09% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on MA shares. Truist Financial reduced their price target on Mastercard from $640.00 to $612.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 17th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Mastercard from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, July 18th. Wolfe Research set a $655.00 price objective on Mastercard in a report on Monday, June 23rd. Citigroup increased their price target on Mastercard from $650.00 to $652.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, May 5th. Finally, TD Cowen restated a "buy" rating and issued a $645.00 target price on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Monday, August 11th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-four have issued a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Mastercard currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $617.93.

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.