Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) Shares Sold by Value Partners Investments Inc.

Value Partners Investments Inc. lowered its stake in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA - Free Report) by 32.7% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,363 shares of the credit services provider's stock after selling 2,602 shares during the quarter. Value Partners Investments Inc.'s holdings in Mastercard were worth $2,941,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. NewSquare Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the fourth quarter worth approximately $26,000. Measured Risk Portfolios Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the fourth quarter worth approximately $31,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the fourth quarter worth approximately $32,000. Navigoe LLC acquired a new position in Mastercard in the fourth quarter worth $33,000. Finally, 10Elms LLP acquired a new position in Mastercard in the fourth quarter worth $33,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.28% of the company's stock.

Mastercard Price Performance

Shares of Mastercard stock opened at $550.02 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.81. The company's 50-day moving average price is $561.86 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $545.04. Mastercard Incorporated has a 52 week low of $428.86 and a 52 week high of $594.71. The stock has a market cap of $501.46 billion, a PE ratio of 38.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 1.05.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The credit services provider reported $3.73 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 analysts' expectations of $7.12 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $3.31 earnings per share. Mastercard's revenue for the quarter was up 14.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have commented on MA shares. KeyCorp lifted their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $630.00 to $635.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $633.00 price objective on shares of Mastercard in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Tigress Financial reaffirmed a "strong-buy" rating on shares of Mastercard in a report on Monday, March 10th. Macquarie decreased their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $645.00 to $610.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Monness Crespi & Hardt downgraded shares of Mastercard from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Mastercard currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $610.00.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Mastercard news, insider Craig Vosburg sold 14,051 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $585.05, for a total transaction of $8,220,537.55. Following the sale, the insider now owns 58,451 shares in the company, valued at approximately $34,196,757.55. The trade was a 19.38% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Raj Seshadri sold 949 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $535.80, for a total value of $508,474.20. Following the sale, the insider now owns 14,021 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,512,451.80. The trade was a 6.34% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 35,115 shares of company stock worth $18,324,718. 0.09% of the stock is 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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