Lbp Am Sa Sells 14,596 Shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

LBP AM SA lowered its stake in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA - Free Report) by 4.5% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 306,281 shares of the credit services provider's stock after selling 14,596 shares during the quarter. Mastercard comprises about 2.6% of LBP AM SA's holdings, making the stock its 7th largest position. LBP AM SA's holdings in Mastercard were worth $167,879,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in MA. Measured Risk Portfolios Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $31,000. 10Elms LLP acquired a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Navigoe LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Truvestments Capital LLC lifted its position in shares of Mastercard by 62.5% during the 4th quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC now owns 65 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares during the period. Finally, Mpwm Advisory Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.28% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently issued reports on MA shares. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a "buy" rating and set a $633.00 price objective on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Macquarie cut their price objective on Mastercard from $645.00 to $610.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Citigroup lifted their price objective on Mastercard from $650.00 to $652.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, May 5th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Mastercard from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, June 14th. Finally, Wolfe Research set a $655.00 price target on Mastercard in a report on Monday, June 23rd. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $611.50.

Insider Activity at Mastercard

In other news, insider Raj Seshadri sold 1,100 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $546.77, for a total value of $601,447.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 12,921 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,064,815.17. This represents a 7.85% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Linda Pistecchia Kirkpatrick sold 958 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $560.00, for a total transaction of $536,480.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 23,624 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,229,440. This trade represents a 3.90% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 38,753 shares of company stock worth $20,351,084. Company insiders own 0.09% of the company's stock.

Mastercard Stock Up 0.3%

Mastercard stock traded up $1.92 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $564.36. 2,453,888 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,674,082. Mastercard Incorporated has a 52-week low of $428.86 and a 52-week 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. The firm has a market cap of $514.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.58, a PEG ratio of 2.46 and a beta of 1.02. The company's 50-day moving average is $567.91 and its two-hundred day moving average is $547.21.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 firm had revenue of $7.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.12 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $3.31 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 14.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts predict that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 earnings per share for the current year.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed 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 of this dividend 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%.

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.