Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. Acquires 7,605 Shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA - Free Report) by 8.1% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 101,082 shares of the credit services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 7,605 shares during the period. Mastercard accounts for 1.0% of Crossmark Global Holdings Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 13th biggest holding. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc.'s holdings in Mastercard were worth $55,405,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of MA. Whalerock Point Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Mastercard by 1.3% during the fourth quarter. Whalerock Point Partners LLC now owns 14,678 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $7,729,000 after purchasing an additional 185 shares during the last quarter. Fortis Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Mastercard by 9.4% during the 1st quarter. Fortis Advisors LLC now owns 871 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $477,000 after buying an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Canandaigua National Trust Co of Florida boosted its holdings in Mastercard by 36.4% in the 1st quarter. Canandaigua National Trust Co of Florida now owns 693 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $380,000 after buying an additional 185 shares during the period. Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Mastercard by 18.0% in the 1st quarter. Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 6,870 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $3,766,000 after buying an additional 1,047 shares during the period. Finally, Baldwin Investment Management LLC grew its stake in Mastercard by 5.7% in the 4th quarter. Baldwin Investment Management LLC now owns 1,731 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $911,000 after buying an additional 93 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 97.28% of the company's stock.

Mastercard Trading Up 0.1%

Shares of MA stock traded up $0.60 on Wednesday, hitting $562.28. 1,107,724 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,668,898. The stock has a market capitalization of $512.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.43, a P/E/G ratio of 2.46 and a beta of 1.02. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $567.91 and its 200 day simple moving average is $547.21. Mastercard Incorporated has a one year low of $428.86 and a one year high of $594.71. 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 (NYSE:MA - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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. Mastercard had a return on equity of 196.87% and a net margin of 45.21%. The firm had revenue of $7.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $7.12 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $3.31 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 14.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts forecast that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 EPS for the current year.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Mastercard news, Director Julius Genachowski sold 312 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $570.67, for a total transaction of $178,049.04. Following the transaction, the director owned 8,469 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,833,004.23. This represents a 3.55% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Craig Vosburg sold 9,428 shares of Mastercard stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $353.05, for a total value of $3,328,555.40. Following the sale, the insider owned 58,451 shares in the company, valued at $20,636,125.55. This represents a 13.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 38,753 shares of company stock worth $20,351,084. 0.09% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have issued reports on MA. Jefferies Financial Group restated a "buy" rating on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Friday, June 6th. UBS Group raised their target price on Mastercard from $660.00 to $670.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 3rd. Wall Street Zen lowered Mastercard from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, June 14th. Macquarie lowered their price target on shares of Mastercard from $645.00 to $610.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $633.00 price objective on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $611.50.

Mastercard Company 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.