Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC Boosts Stock Holdings in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Key Points

• Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC increased its stake in Mastercard by 17.6% during Q1, owning a total of 68,296 shares valued at approximately $37.4 million.
• KeyCorp raised its price target for Mastercard's stock to $660, and overall, 25 analysts have issued a buy rating on the stock, indicating strong market confidence.
• Mastercard recently reported Q2 earnings of $4.15 EPS, beating estimates and reflecting 16.8% year-over-year revenue growth.

Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC grew its position in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA - Free Report) by 17.6% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 68,296 shares of the credit services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 10,236 shares during the quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC's holdings in Mastercard were worth $37,435,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Measured Risk Portfolios Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Mastercard in the 4th quarter worth about $31,000. Navigoe LLC purchased a new position in shares of Mastercard in the 4th quarter worth about $33,000. 10Elms LLP purchased a new position in shares of Mastercard in the 4th quarter worth about $33,000. Hughes Financial Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of Mastercard in the 1st quarter worth about $34,000. Finally, Mpwm Advisory Solutions LLC purchased a new position in shares of Mastercard in the 4th quarter worth about $36,000. 97.28% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MA has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. KeyCorp boosted their price target on shares of Mastercard from $635.00 to $660.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, August 1st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft started coverage on shares of Mastercard in a report on Thursday, July 17th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $650.00 price target on the stock. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded Mastercard from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Monday, July 14th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Mastercard from $625.00 to $650.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Mastercard from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, July 18th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-five have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Mastercard currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $615.33.

Insider Transactions at Mastercard

In other Mastercard news, insider Craig Vosburg sold 9,428 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $353.05, for a total value of $3,328,555.40. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 58,451 shares of the company's stock, valued at $20,636,125.55. This represents a 13.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, 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 value of $601,447.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 38,453 shares of company stock worth $20,178,667 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.09% of the company's stock.

Mastercard Stock Up 0.7%

Shares of NYSE MA opened at $578.08 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $522.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.98, a PEG ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 1.03. The business has a 50-day moving average of $563.47 and a 200-day moving average of $554.15. 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 $456.07 and a 12 month high of $594.71.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The credit services provider reported $4.15 earnings per share (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 analyst estimates of $7.95 billion. Mastercard had a return on equity of 200.01% and a net margin of 44.93%. Mastercard's revenue for the quarter was up 16.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.50 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

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

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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