State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D Has $151.87 Million Stake in Mastercard Incorporated $MA

Key Points

• The State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D reduced its holdings in Mastercard by 9.0%, owning 277,075 shares valued at approximately $151.87 million.
• Mastercard's recent quarterly earnings report showed earnings per share of $4.15, exceeding estimates, with a revenue of $8.13 billion, up 16.8% year-over-year.
• Analysts have varied ratings on Mastercard, with a consensus of “Moderate Buy” and a target price of $615.33, indicating overall positive sentiment towards its stock performance.

State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D trimmed its holdings in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA - Free Report) by 9.0% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 277,075 shares of the credit services provider's stock after selling 27,449 shares during the period. Mastercard makes up approximately 0.7% of State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D's investment portfolio, making the stock its 20th largest holding. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D's holdings in Mastercard were worth $151,870,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Measured Risk Portfolios Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Mastercard in the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. 10Elms LLP acquired a new stake in Mastercard in the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. Hughes Financial Services LLC acquired a new stake in Mastercard in the 1st quarter worth approximately $34,000. Navigoe LLC acquired a new stake in Mastercard in the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, Mpwm Advisory Solutions LLC bought a new position in Mastercard in the 4th quarter worth approximately $36,000. 97.28% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have commented on MA. UBS Group lifted 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. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Mastercard from $625.00 to $650.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price target on Mastercard from $650.00 to $656.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Citigroup increased their target price on Mastercard from $650.00 to $652.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, May 5th. Finally, Macquarie decreased their price target on Mastercard from $645.00 to $610.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-four have issued a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $617.93.

Mastercard Price Performance

MA stock traded up $1.6290 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $585.7690. 2,333,968 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,808,627. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $563.30 and a 200 day moving average price of $554.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.41, a current ratio of 1.16 and a quick ratio of 1.16. Mastercard Incorporated has a 52 week low of $461.90 and a 52 week high of $594.71. The stock has a market capitalization of $529.54 billion, a PE ratio of 39.50, a P/E/G ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 1.03.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The credit services provider reported $4.15 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.05 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $8.13 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.95 billion. Mastercard had a net margin of 44.93% and a return on equity of 200.01%. The firm's revenue was up 16.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $3.50 EPS. As a group, analysts expect 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 was paid on Friday, August 8th. Investors of record on Wednesday, July 9th were paid a dividend of $0.76 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, July 9th. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. Mastercard's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 20.50%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Raj Seshadri sold 1,100 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $546.77, for a total transaction of $601,447.00. Following the completion of the sale, 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 transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Julius Genachowski sold 312 shares of the firm'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 value of $178,049.04. Following the sale, the director directly owned 8,469 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,833,004.23. This represents a 3.55% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 38,453 shares of company stock worth $20,178,667. Company insiders own 0.09% of the company's stock.

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.