Jennison Associates LLC Sells 625,414 Shares of Mastercard Incorporated $MA

Key Points

• Jennison Associates cut its Mastercard stake by 11.9%, selling 625,414 shares and leaving 4,642,316 shares valued at about $2.65 billion (≈1.6% of Jennison’s portfolio, ≈0.52% of Mastercard).
• Mastercard beat Q1 expectations, reporting $4.60 EPS vs. $4.38 expected and $8.40 billion in revenue (up 15.8% YoY) with strong margins and ROE.
• Analysts remain broadly positive with a consensus "Buy" and an average target near $659 (some targets up to $700), though a proposed ~$200B swipe‑fee settlement and macro headwinds present regulatory and market risks.

Jennison Associates LLC lessened its holdings in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA - Free Report) by 11.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 4,642,316 shares of the credit services provider's stock after selling 625,414 shares during the quarter. Mastercard accounts for 1.6% of Jennison Associates LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 14th largest position. Jennison Associates LLC owned approximately 0.52% of Mastercard worth $2,650,205,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of MA. Brighton Jones LLC grew its stake in Mastercard by 42.3% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 6,824 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $3,594,000 after purchasing an additional 2,028 shares during the period. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. grew its stake in Mastercard by 8.5% in the 2nd quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. now owns 2,548 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $1,432,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the period. Betterment LLC grew its stake in Mastercard by 6.5% in the 2nd quarter. Betterment LLC now owns 947 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $532,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares during the period. Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC grew its stake in Mastercard by 35.8% in the 2nd quarter. Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC now owns 677,204 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $380,548,000 after purchasing an additional 178,387 shares during the period. Finally, Darwin Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Mastercard in the 2nd quarter valued at $431,000. Institutional investors own 97.28% of the company's stock.

More Mastercard News

Here are the key news stories impacting Mastercard this week:

• Positive Sentiment: BMO Capital initiated coverage with an Outperform and a $605 price target, highlighting Mastercard’s ability to grow beyond basic payments and noting sizable share buybacks (~$11.9B in the year through Sept. 2025) that support EPS and return of capital to shareholders. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts at Erste Group slightly raised FY2026 and FY2027 EPS estimates, a sign of modest upward revisions to profit expectations ahead of Q1 results — this reduces downside surprise risk on the print. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Product and partnership momentum: Mastercard is expanding Agent Pay and Verifiable Intent for AI agent-driven commerce and enabling crypto‑backed payments via integrations (KuCoin, Lobster.cash), which diversify revenue opportunities and position MA for new payment rails. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Targeting B2B payments friction with Wells Fargo could unlock higher-margin corporate card volume and accelerate card adoption in a large, under‑penetrated market. This is a structural growth story beyond consumer spend. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: MA will participate in investor conferences in May — useful for management to frame growth drivers and buyback plans but not an immediate fundamental change. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Q1 earnings are scheduled before the open today — the print is the main near‑term catalyst; expectations are elevated after recent beats, so results and guidance will drive intraday moves. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Wider market context: investors are digesting Big Tech earnings and macro cues (inflation) that influence risk appetite for cyclical/financial names. This adds a market‑level driver separate from MA’s company news. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Regulatory/legal overhang: retailers are opposing a proposed ~$200B Visa‑Mastercard swipe‑fee settlement — continued litigation, settlement revisions or carve-outs could increase costs or uncertainty. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Macro/geopolitical stress and sector weakness have left payments stocks down year‑to‑date in some analyses — that can amplify negative reaction to any softer guidance or signs of decelerating volumes. Read More.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have issued reports on MA shares. TD Cowen restated a "buy" rating on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Tuesday, March 17th. Macquarie Infrastructure upped their price target on Mastercard from $660.00 to $675.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Wolfe Research reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Tuesday, March 17th. BMO Capital Markets started coverage on Mastercard in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. They set an "outperform" rating and a $605.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Bank of America started coverage on Mastercard in a research report on Thursday, March 5th. They set a "buy" rating and a $700.00 price target on the stock. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have issued a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Mastercard presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $659.00.

Mastercard Stock Down 2.7%

Shares of NYSE MA opened at $510.94 on Thursday. Mastercard Incorporated has a one year low of $480.50 and a one year high of $601.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.36, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 1.03. The business's fifty day moving average price is $507.05 and its 200-day moving average price is $536.46. The stock has a market capitalization of $455.67 billion, a PE ratio of 30.90, a P/E/G ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 0.83.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The credit services provider reported $4.60 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $4.38 by $0.22. Mastercard had a return on equity of 203.92% and a net margin of 45.65%.The firm had revenue of $8.40 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $8.25 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.73 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 15.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Mastercard Incorporated will post 19.52 EPS for the current year.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 8th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 9th will be issued a dividend of $0.87 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 9th. This represents a $3.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.7%. Mastercard's dividend payout ratio is 21.07%.

Mastercard Company Profile

Mastercard Incorporated is a global payments technology company that operates a network connecting consumers, financial institutions, merchants, governments and businesses in more than 200 countries and territories. The company facilitates electronic payments and transaction processing for credit, debit and prepaid card products carrying the Mastercard brand, while also providing a range of payment-related services to issuers, acquirers and merchants. Its technology and network enable authorization, clearing and settlement of payments and support a broad set of use cases including point-of-sale, e-commerce and mobile payments.

Beyond core transaction processing, Mastercard offers a suite of value-added services such as fraud and risk management, identity and authentication tools, tokenization and digital wallet support, cross-border and commercial payment solutions, and data analytics and consulting services for merchants and financial partners.

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