Independent Advisor Alliance Buys 1,630 Shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Key Points

• Independent Advisor Alliance increased its ownership in Mastercard by 6.0%, acquiring an additional 1,630 shares, bringing its total holdings to 28,817 shares valued at approximately $15.8 million.
• Multiple brokerage firms have raised their price targets for Mastercard, with Citigroup increasing it to $652 and Morgan Stanley to $661, reflecting a strong "buy" sentiment among analysts.
• Mastercard reported an EPS of $4.15 for the last quarter, exceeding expectations, alongside a quarterly revenue increase of 16.8% year-over-year.

Independent Advisor Alliance raised its position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA - Free Report) by 6.0% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 28,817 shares of the credit services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 1,630 shares during the period. Independent Advisor Alliance's holdings in Mastercard were worth $15,795,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Whalerock Point Partners LLC increased its holdings 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 during the last quarter. Fortis Advisors LLC increased its holdings 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 during the last quarter. Canandaigua National Trust Co of Florida increased its holdings 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 during the last quarter. Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings 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 during the last quarter. Finally, Baldwin Investment Management LLC increased its holdings 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 during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 97.28% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Raj Seshadri sold 1,100 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, the insider owned 12,921 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,064,815.17. This represents a 7.85% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Julius Genachowski sold 312 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $570.67, for a total transaction of $178,049.04. Following the sale, the director directly owned 8,469 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,833,004.23. This trade represents a 3.55% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 38,453 shares of company stock worth $20,178,667. Insiders own 0.09% of the company's stock.

Mastercard Stock Performance

Shares of MA traded up $0.29 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $573.88. 2,593,766 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,583,637. Mastercard Incorporated has a 52 week low of $454.89 and a 52 week high of $594.71. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $563.59 and its 200-day simple moving average is $553.98. The firm has a market cap of $518.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.70, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 1.03. The company has a quick ratio of 1.16, a current ratio of 1.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.41.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA - Get Free Report) last announced 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 company had revenue of $8.13 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $7.95 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $3.50 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 16.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 EPS for the current year.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 8th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 9th were issued a dividend of $0.76 per share. 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 20.50%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have issued reports on MA shares. KeyCorp upped their price objective on Mastercard from $635.00 to $660.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Wall Street Zen upgraded Mastercard from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, July 18th. Macquarie dropped their price objective on Mastercard from $645.00 to $610.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Jefferies Financial Group restated a "buy" rating on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Friday, June 6th. Finally, Wolfe Research set a $655.00 price objective on Mastercard in a research note on Monday, June 23rd. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-five have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $615.33.

Mastercard 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.