Kestra Advisory Services LLC Has $35.18 Million Stock Position in Mastercard Incorporated $MA

Key Points

• Kestra Advisory Services LLC has reduced its stake in Mastercard by 5.7%, owning a total of $35.18 million worth of shares after selling 3,903 shares in the first quarter.
• Mastercard reported strong earnings, with an EPS of $4.15 exceeding analysts' expectations, and a revenue of $8.13 billion for the quarter.
• Analysts have generally favorable views, with the average target price for Mastercard set at $617.93, indicating a "Moderate Buy" rating from multiple analysts.

Kestra Advisory Services LLC reduced its stake in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA - Free Report) by 5.7% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 64,191 shares of the credit services provider's stock after selling 3,903 shares during the period. Kestra Advisory Services LLC's holdings in Mastercard were worth $35,184,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in MA. Keystone Global Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Mastercard in the 1st quarter valued at about $31,000. Measured Risk Portfolios Inc. acquired a new position in Mastercard during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. 10Elms LLP bought a new stake in Mastercard in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Hughes Financial Services LLC acquired a new stake in Mastercard in the first quarter worth $34,000. Finally, Navigoe LLC bought a new position in shares of Mastercard during the fourth quarter worth $33,000. Institutional investors own 97.28% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently commented on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $650.00 to $656.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Wall Street Zen upgraded Mastercard from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, July 18th. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Friday, June 6th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on Mastercard from $650.00 to $652.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, May 5th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft started coverage on Mastercard in a research note on Thursday, July 17th. They set a "buy" rating and a $650.00 target price for the company. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-four have issued a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Mastercard has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $617.93.

Mastercard Price Performance

Shares of MA opened at $591.4220 on Friday. 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 Incorporated has a twelve month low of $461.90 and a twelve month high of $594.71. The stock has a market capitalization of $534.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.88, a P/E/G ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 1.03. The company has a 50 day moving average of $563.30 and a 200-day moving average of $555.47.

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. The business 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 firm's revenue was up 16.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $3.50 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 8th. Investors of record on Wednesday, July 9th were given a $0.76 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, July 9th. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.5%. Mastercard's payout ratio is currently 20.50%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Mastercard

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 stock was sold at an average price of $546.77, for a total transaction of $601,447.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 12,921 shares in the company, valued at $7,064,815.17. This represents a 7.85% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CFO J. Mehra Sachin sold 17,816 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $586.89, for a total value of $10,456,032.24. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 31,234 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $18,330,922.26. The trade was a 36.32% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 56,269 shares of company stock valued at $30,634,699 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.09% of the company's stock.

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.

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