Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC Acquires 1,093 Shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC boosted its holdings in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA - Free Report) by 4.4% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 26,074 shares of the credit services provider's stock after buying an additional 1,093 shares during the quarter. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC's holdings in Mastercard were worth $14,292,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in MA. Measured Risk Portfolios Inc. acquired a new position in Mastercard in the fourth quarter valued at $31,000. 10Elms LLP bought a new position in shares of Mastercard in the 4th quarter worth about $33,000. Hughes Financial Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of Mastercard in the 1st quarter valued at about $34,000. Navigoe LLC bought a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the 4th quarter valued at about $33,000. Finally, Mpwm Advisory Solutions LLC bought a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the 4th quarter valued at about $36,000. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Mastercard Stock Performance

Shares of Mastercard stock traded down $3.09 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $552.52. 2,579,579 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,665,575. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $567.30 and a 200-day simple moving average of $548.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.81, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 1.11. The stock has a market capitalization of $503.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.75, a PEG ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 1.02. Mastercard Incorporated has a 12-month low of $428.86 and a 12-month high of $594.71.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The credit services provider reported $3.73 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.57 by $0.16. Mastercard had a net margin of 45.21% and a return on equity of 196.87%. The company had revenue of $7.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $7.12 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $3.31 EPS. Mastercard's revenue was up 14.2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 EPS for the current fiscal 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 dividend of $0.76 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 9th. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.55%. Mastercard's payout ratio is 21.32%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the company. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Friday, June 6th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft started coverage on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Thursday. They set a "buy" rating and a $650.00 target price on the stock. Citigroup raised their price target on shares of Mastercard from $650.00 to $652.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, May 5th. Macquarie dropped their price objective 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, Wolfe Research set a $655.00 price objective on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Monday, June 23rd. Five equities research 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 stock. According to MarketBeat, Mastercard currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $612.90.

Insider Buying and Selling at Mastercard

In other Mastercard news, insider Linda Pistecchia Kirkpatrick sold 958 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $560.00, for a total value of $536,480.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 23,624 shares in the company, valued at $13,229,440. This represents a 3.90% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Raj Seshadri sold 1,100 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, June 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $546.77, for a total transaction of $601,447.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 12,921 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,064,815.17. This trade represents a 7.85% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 38,753 shares of company stock worth $20,351,084. 0.09% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.