Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) Shares Bought by Hartford Funds Management Co LLC

Hartford Funds Management Co LLC grew its stake in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA - Free Report) by 19.7% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,784 shares of the credit services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 459 shares during the quarter. Mastercard makes up 0.1% of Hartford Funds Management Co LLC's holdings, making the stock its 25th biggest position. Hartford Funds Management Co LLC's holdings in Mastercard were worth $1,526,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Mastercard in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $6,022,224,000. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in shares of Mastercard by 65,631.5% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 8,225,637 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $4,508,636,000 after acquiring an additional 8,213,123 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp raised its position in Mastercard by 15.2% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 9,149,181 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $4,817,684,000 after acquiring an additional 1,207,787 shares during the last quarter. Sanders Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Mastercard in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $617,303,000. Finally, Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH purchased a new position in shares of Mastercard in the fourth quarter valued at $561,313,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.28% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently commented on MA shares. Monness Crespi & Hardt lowered shares of Mastercard from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $650.00 price target on shares of Mastercard in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. UBS Group upped their price target on Mastercard from $660.00 to $670.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 3rd. Wall Street Zen upgraded Mastercard from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft assumed coverage on Mastercard in a report on Thursday, July 17th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $650.00 price objective on the stock. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-five have issued a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Mastercard has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $612.90.

Mastercard Stock Up 0.7%

MA stock opened at $556.35 on Tuesday. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $567.30 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $548.77. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.81. Mastercard Incorporated has a 1-year low of $428.86 and a 1-year high of $594.71. The stock has a market cap of $507.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.00, a P/E/G ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 1.02.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The credit services provider reported $3.73 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.57 by $0.16. Mastercard had a return on equity of 196.87% and a net margin of 45.21%. The business 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 earned $3.31 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 14.2% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 EPS for the current year.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 8th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 9th will be given a dividend of $0.76 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, July 9th. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.55%. Mastercard's dividend payout ratio is presently 21.32%.

Insider Transactions at Mastercard

In related news, Director Julius Genachowski sold 312 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $570.67, for a total transaction of $178,049.04. Following the sale, the director owned 8,469 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,833,004.23. This represents a 3.55% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Craig Vosburg sold 14,051 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $585.05, for a total value of $8,220,537.55. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 58,451 shares in the company, valued at $34,196,757.55. This trade represents a 19.38% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 38,753 shares of company stock worth $20,351,084 over the last quarter. 0.09% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.

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