Banco Santander S.A. Trims Stake in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Key Points

• Banco Santander S.A. reduced its stake in Mastercard by 1.2%, now holding 113,174 shares valued at approximately $62 million, making it the 21st largest holding for the institution.
• Insider sales included Raj Seshadri selling 1,100 shares for $601,447, reflecting a 7.85% decrease in his ownership, while Linda Pistecchia Kirkpatrick sold 959 shares for about $549,373.
• Analysts have varied price targets for Mastercard, with Deutsche Bank setting a target of $650 and UBS raising their target to $670, while the average target price is $615.33.

Banco Santander S.A. reduced its stake in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA - Free Report) by 1.2% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 113,174 shares of the credit services provider's stock after selling 1,357 shares during the period. Mastercard makes up about 0.7% of Banco Santander S.A.'s holdings, making the stock its 21st largest holding. Banco Santander S.A.'s holdings in Mastercard were worth $62,033,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Accredited Investors Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 2.6% in the first quarter. Accredited Investors Inc. now owns 718 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $394,000 after buying an additional 18 shares during the period. Wealthstream Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 2.9% in the first quarter. Wealthstream Advisors Inc. now owns 632 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $347,000 after buying an additional 18 shares during the period. Phillips Wealth Planners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 1.8% in the first quarter. Phillips Wealth Planners LLC now owns 1,055 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $538,000 after buying an additional 19 shares during the period. Alta Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 3.6% in the first quarter. Alta Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 540 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $296,000 after buying an additional 19 shares during the period. Finally, May Hill Capital LLC increased its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 2.0% in the first quarter. May Hill Capital LLC now owns 986 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $540,000 after buying an additional 19 shares during the period. 97.28% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Mastercard Stock Performance

Shares of MA stock traded up $9.84 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $569.73. 2,984,635 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,593,600. Mastercard Incorporated has a 12 month low of $439.59 and a 12 month high of $594.71. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $564.58 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $552.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.41, a quick ratio of 1.16 and a current ratio of 1.16. The firm has a market capitalization of $519.43 billion, a PE ratio of 38.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 1.03.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 31st. The credit services provider reported $4.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $4.05 by $0.10. Mastercard had a net margin of 44.93% and a return on equity of 200.01%. The firm had revenue of $8.13 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.95 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $3.50 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 16.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 EPS for the current year.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 8th. Investors of record on Wednesday, July 9th will be issued 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 0.5%. Mastercard's dividend payout ratio is currently 20.50%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MA has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Wall Street Zen raised Mastercard from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, July 18th. Macquarie cut their target price on Mastercard from $645.00 to $610.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Friday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft initiated coverage on Mastercard in a research note on Thursday, July 17th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $650.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Evercore ISI initiated coverage on Mastercard in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. They issued an "in-line" rating and a $550.00 target price on the stock. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-five have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $615.33.

Insider Activity

In other Mastercard news, insider Linda Pistecchia Kirkpatrick sold 959 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $572.86, for a total transaction of $549,372.74. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 25,540 shares of the company's stock, valued at $14,630,844.40. This represents a 3.62% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Raj Seshadri sold 1,100 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 directly owned 12,921 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,064,815.17. This trade represents a 7.85% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 38,753 shares of company stock worth $20,351,084. 0.09% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

About Mastercard

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.