Mastercard Incorporated $MA Shares Purchased by B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG

Key Points

• B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG increased its stake in Mastercard by 2.2%, now holding 233,689 shares valued at approximately $128 million.
• Mastercard's quarterly earnings exceeded expectations with an EPS of $4.15, and the company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.76 per share.
• Several analysts have raised their price targets on Mastercard, with an average target price of $617.93 and a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy."

B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG grew its stake in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA - Free Report) by 2.2% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 233,689 shares of the credit services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 5,068 shares during the quarter. Mastercard accounts for 1.3% of B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG's investment portfolio, making the stock its 20th biggest position. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG's holdings in Mastercard were worth $128,089,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Keystone Global Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Mastercard in the first quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Measured Risk Portfolios Inc. acquired a new stake in Mastercard during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. 10Elms LLP acquired a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Hughes Financial Services LLC purchased a new position in Mastercard during the first quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Finally, Navigoe LLC purchased a new position in Mastercard during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have issued reports on MA shares. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Mastercard from $625.00 to $650.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft initiated coverage on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Thursday, July 17th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $650.00 price target on the stock. KeyCorp raised their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $635.00 to $660.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Finally, Macquarie lowered their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $645.00 to $610.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-four have given a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $617.93.

Mastercard Price Performance

Shares of MA stock opened at $592.88 on Wednesday. The stock's fifty day moving average is $565.00 and its 200-day moving average is $556.05. The stock has a market capitalization of $535.97 billion, a PE ratio of 39.98, a PEG ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 1.03. Mastercard Incorporated has a 52 week low of $465.59 and a 52 week high of $601.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.41, a quick ratio of 1.16 and a current ratio of 1.16.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 31st. The credit services provider reported $4.15 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $4.05 by $0.10. Mastercard had a return on equity of 200.01% and a net margin of 44.93%.The business had revenue of $8.13 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.95 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $3.50 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 16.8% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 8th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 9th were given a dividend of $0.76 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, July 9th. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. Mastercard's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 20.50%.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Craig Vosburg sold 9,428 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $353.05, for a total transaction of $3,328,555.40. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 58,451 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $20,636,125.55. This trade represents a 13.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Linda Pistecchia Kirkpatrick sold 958 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $560.00, for a total transaction of $536,480.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 23,624 shares in the company, valued at $13,229,440. This represents a 3.90% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 56,269 shares of company stock valued at $30,634,699. Company 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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