Mastercard Incorporated $MA Shares Sold by Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A.

Key Points

• Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A. reduced its Mastercard stake by 15.3% in the fourth quarter, selling 26,804 shares and leaving it with 148,681 shares valued at about $84.98 million.
• Mastercard reported strong quarterly results, posting EPS of $4.60 versus estimates of $4.41 and revenue of $8.40 billion, with revenue rising 15.8% year over year.
• The company also announced a quarterly dividend of $0.87 per share, and analysts currently maintain a Buy consensus with a target price around $656.04.

Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A. lessened its stake in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA - Free Report) by 15.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 148,681 shares of the credit services provider's stock after selling 26,804 shares during the period. Mastercard accounts for approximately 0.6% of Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A.'s portfolio, making the stock its 26th largest position. Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A.'s holdings in Mastercard were worth $84,980,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of MA. Riggs Asset Managment Co. Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Mastercard by 20.0% during the second quarter. Riggs Asset Managment Co. Inc. now owns 108 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $61,000 after buying an additional 18 shares during the period. Affinity Capital Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Mastercard by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Affinity Capital Advisors LLC now owns 2,939 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $1,678,000 after buying an additional 19 shares during the period. Abacus Planning Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Mastercard by 3.3% during the fourth quarter. Abacus Planning Group Inc. now owns 590 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $337,000 after buying an additional 19 shares during the period. Thomasville National Bank boosted its stake in shares of Mastercard by 4.1% during the fourth quarter. Thomasville National Bank now owns 479 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $273,000 after buying an additional 19 shares during the period. Finally, Castle Rock Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Mastercard by 2.8% during the fourth quarter. Castle Rock Wealth Management LLC now owns 695 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $387,000 after buying an additional 19 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.28% of the company's stock.

Mastercard Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MA opened at $492.93 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.56. The company has a market cap of $435.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.53, a PEG ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 0.74. Mastercard Incorporated has a 52 week low of $464.52 and a 52 week high of $601.77. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $499.23 and a 200 day moving average price of $522.41.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The credit services provider reported $4.60 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $4.41 by $0.19. The firm had revenue of $8.40 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.26 billion. Mastercard had a net margin of 45.88% and a return on equity of 212.96%. The firm's revenue was up 15.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $3.73 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that Mastercard Incorporated will post 19.6 earnings per share for the current year.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 7th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 9th will be issued a $0.87 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 9th. This represents a $3.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.7%. Mastercard's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 20.14%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on MA. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their target price on shares of Mastercard from $656.00 to $629.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Dbs Bank upgraded shares of Mastercard to a "moderate buy" rating in a research note on Friday, March 27th. Raymond James Financial set a $609.00 target price on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Bank of America initiated coverage on shares of Mastercard in a report on Thursday, March 5th. They set a "buy" rating and a $700.00 price target for the company. Finally, Evercore restated a "negative" rating on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Tuesday, March 17th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have assigned a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Mastercard currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $656.04.

Mastercard News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Mastercard this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Mastercard expanded its cross-border payments footprint through a new partnership involving PaidBy and joined the Appia Foundation, reinforcing its growth opportunity in international payments. Mastercard (MA) Expands Cross Border Payments With PaidBy And Joins Appia Foundation
• Positive Sentiment: Mastercard announced a quarterly cash dividend of $0.87 per share, signaling ongoing financial strength and a continued commitment to returning capital to shareholders. Mastercard Board of Directors Announces Quarterly Dividend
• Positive Sentiment: Management commentary on consumer spending suggests households are still navigating the economy well, which is important for Mastercard because transaction volume tends to track consumer activity. Consumers are doing well in navigating the current economic environment, says Mastercard's Meyer
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst-style coverage highlighted Mastercard as a top-ranked momentum stock, reflecting continued market interest in the company’s earnings quality and durable growth profile. MasterCard (MA) is a Top-Ranked Momentum Stock: Should You Buy?
• Neutral Sentiment: Mastercard’s annual meeting results were released, but the filing appears routine and does not include an obvious new catalyst for the stock. Mastercard Announces Annual Meeting Results
• Neutral Sentiment: Several articles focused on Mastercard executives’ views on AI, marketing, and “agentic commerce,” which are strategically interesting but mostly long-term narrative drivers rather than immediate stock catalysts. Why Agentic Commerce Could Be a Game-Changer for Mastercard

Mastercard 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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