Ibex Wealth Advisors Boosts Stake in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Ibex Wealth Advisors raised its position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA - Free Report) by 12.9% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 21,024 shares of the credit services provider's stock after buying an additional 2,404 shares during the quarter. Mastercard comprises about 1.5% of Ibex Wealth Advisors' holdings, making the stock its 15th largest position. Ibex Wealth Advisors' holdings in Mastercard were worth $11,524,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Mastercard during the 4th quarter worth approximately $6,022,224,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in Mastercard by 65,631.5% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 8,225,637 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $4,508,636,000 after acquiring an additional 8,213,123 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in Mastercard in the 4th quarter worth about $837,017,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Mastercard by 79,739.7% in the fourth quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,555,277 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $818,962,000 after purchasing an additional 1,553,329 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp grew its position in Mastercard by 15.2% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 9,149,181 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $4,817,684,000 after buying an additional 1,207,787 shares in the last quarter. 97.28% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Mastercard Stock Up 0.2%

Mastercard stock traded up $1.24 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $590.78. 2,238,068 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,605,271. The company has a market cap of $538.62 billion, a PE ratio of 42.53, a P/E/G ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.05. Mastercard Incorporated has a 12 month low of $428.86 and a 12 month high of $594.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 1.03. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $549.42 and a two-hundred day moving average of $542.89.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The credit services provider reported $3.73 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.57 by $0.16. Mastercard had a net margin of 45.71% and a return on equity of 188.47%. The firm had revenue of $7.25 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.12 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $3.31 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 14.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts expect that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MA has been the subject of several analyst reports. KeyCorp upped their target price on Mastercard from $630.00 to $635.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Monness Crespi & Hardt downgraded shares of Mastercard from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Mastercard from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, June 6th. Tigress Financial reiterated a "strong-buy" rating on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Monday, March 10th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $633.00 price target on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $610.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Edward Grunde Mclaughlin sold 7,132 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $534.68, for a total transaction of $3,813,337.76. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 34,524 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $18,459,292.32. The trade was a 17.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Craig Vosburg sold 14,051 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction 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 now owns 58,451 shares in the company, valued at approximately $34,196,757.55. This 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 37,258 shares of company stock valued at $20,885,067. 0.09% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Mastercard Company 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.