Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc. Sells 9,697 Shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc. reduced its stake in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA - Free Report) by 6.8% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 133,361 shares of the credit services provider's stock after selling 9,697 shares during the period. Mastercard accounts for about 3.4% of Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 3rd biggest position. Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc.'s holdings in Mastercard were worth $73,098,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Measured Risk Portfolios Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the 4th quarter worth $31,000. Navigoe LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the 4th quarter worth $33,000. 10Elms LLP acquired a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the 4th quarter worth $33,000. Hughes Financial Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the 1st quarter worth $34,000. Finally, Mpwm Advisory Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the 4th quarter worth $36,000. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Mastercard Stock Up 0.8%

Shares of Mastercard stock traded up $4.68 during trading on Friday, reaching $568.18. The company had a trading volume of 1,513,080 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,823,091. The company has a market cap of $518.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.02. The firm's fifty day moving average is $565.90 and its 200-day moving average is $549.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.81, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a current ratio of 1.11. Mastercard Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $432.11 and a fifty-two week high of $594.71.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The credit services provider reported $3.73 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.57 by $0.16. The business had revenue of $7.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.12 billion. Mastercard had a net margin of 45.21% and a return on equity of 196.87%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 14.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $3.31 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 EPS for the current year.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 8th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 9th will be issued a $0.76 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 9th. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.54%. Mastercard's dividend payout ratio is currently 21.32%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Mastercard

In other Mastercard news, Director Julius Genachowski sold 312 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $570.67, for a total value of $178,049.04. Following the transaction, the director owned 8,469 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,833,004.23. This trade represents a 3.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Raj Seshadri sold 1,100 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $546.77, for a total transaction of $601,447.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 12,921 shares in the company, valued at $7,064,815.17. This represents a 7.85% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 38,753 shares of company stock worth $20,351,084. Insiders own 0.09% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently commented on MA shares. Wall Street Zen upgraded Mastercard from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, July 18th. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $633.00 price target on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. KeyCorp upped their price target on shares of Mastercard from $630.00 to $635.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Monness Crespi & Hardt cut shares of Mastercard from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Finally, Truist Financial decreased their price target on shares of Mastercard from $640.00 to $612.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 17th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-five have issued a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Mastercard presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $612.90.

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.