Independence Bank of Kentucky Has $4.13 Million Position in Mastercard Incorporated $MA

Key Points

• Independence Bank of Kentucky increased its stake in Mastercard by 8.2%, owning 7,352 shares valued at approximately $4.13 million after purchasing 555 additional shares in the second quarter.
• The stock's consensus rating is "Buy" with an average price target of $630.89, as two analysts rated it as a Strong Buy, while others have given Buy and Hold ratings.
• Mastercard announced a quarterly dividend of $0.76 to be issued on November 7th, which represents an annualized total of $3.04 and a dividend yield of 0.5%.

Independence Bank of Kentucky raised its stake in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA - Free Report) by 8.2% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 7,352 shares of the credit services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 555 shares during the period. Independence Bank of Kentucky's holdings in Mastercard were worth $4,131,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Kingstone Capital Partners Texas LLC acquired a new position in shares of Mastercard in the second quarter valued at about $11,421,213,000. Nuveen LLC acquired a new position in shares of Mastercard in the first quarter valued at about $4,238,764,000. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its stake in shares of Mastercard by 38.6% in the first quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 13,526,118 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $7,413,936,000 after acquiring an additional 3,765,378 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its stake in shares of Mastercard by 3,493.6% in the second quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 934,110 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $524,914,000 after acquiring an additional 908,116 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its stake in shares of Mastercard by 4.7% in the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 20,096,979 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $11,015,557,000 after acquiring an additional 907,184 shares in the last quarter. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently commented on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a "buy" rating on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $639.00 to $661.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $625.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft started coverage on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Thursday, July 17th. They set a "buy" rating and a $650.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $650.00 to $656.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-four have given a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Mastercard presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $630.89.

Insider Transactions at Mastercard

In other news, Director Julius Genachowski sold 312 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $570.67, for a total value of $178,049.04. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 8,469 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,833,004.23. This represents a 3.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO J. Mehra Sachin sold 17,816 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $586.89, for a total transaction of $10,456,032.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 31,234 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $18,330,922.26. This trade represents a 36.32% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 35,391 shares of company stock valued at $20,836,514 in the last three months. Company insiders own 0.09% of the company's stock.

Mastercard Stock Down 0.3%

MA stock opened at $565.63 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $511.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 0.99. The company has a current ratio of 1.16, a quick ratio of 1.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.41. Mastercard Incorporated has a 12 month low of $465.59 and a 12 month high of $601.77. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $579.00 and a 200-day moving average price of $560.57.

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 analysts' consensus estimates of $4.05 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $8.13 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $7.95 billion. Mastercard had a net margin of 44.93% and a return on equity of 200.01%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 16.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $3.50 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 7th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 9th will be issued a $0.76 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, October 9th. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.5%. Mastercard's dividend payout ratio is 20.50%.

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.

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