Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) Stock Holdings Lessened by GCQ FUNDS MANAGEMENT PTY Ltd

GCQ FUNDS MANAGEMENT PTY Ltd cut its position in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA - Free Report) by 30.7% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 49,155 shares of the credit services provider's stock after selling 21,786 shares during the period. Mastercard makes up 6.6% of GCQ FUNDS MANAGEMENT PTY Ltd's holdings, making the stock its 6th biggest holding. GCQ FUNDS MANAGEMENT PTY Ltd's holdings in Mastercard were worth $26,943,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of MA. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the 4th quarter worth about $6,022,224,000. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in Mastercard by 65,631.5% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 8,225,637 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $4,508,636,000 after buying an additional 8,213,123 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in Mastercard during the fourth quarter worth about $837,017,000. Northern Trust Corp boosted its stake 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 buying an additional 1,207,787 shares during the period. Finally, Sanders Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the fourth quarter valued at about $617,303,000. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Mastercard

In other news, insider Linda Pistecchia Kirkpatrick sold 958 shares of Mastercard stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $560.00, for a total transaction of $536,480.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 23,624 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,229,440. The trade was a 3.90% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Sandra A. Arkell sold 150 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $580.00, for a total value of $87,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 3,255 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,887,900. This trade represents a 4.41% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 38,441 shares of company stock valued at $20,173,035 over the last quarter. 0.09% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently commented on MA shares. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $660.00 to $670.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 3rd. Monness Crespi & Hardt lowered Mastercard from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Evercore ISI started coverage on Mastercard in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. They set an "in-line" rating and a $550.00 price target for the company. Macquarie dropped their price objective on Mastercard from $645.00 to $610.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Citigroup boosted their price objective on Mastercard from $650.00 to $652.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, May 5th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $611.50.

Mastercard Stock Down 0.5%

Shares of NYSE MA traded down $2.86 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $561.75. 2,502,267 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,675,461. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $564.92 and its 200-day simple moving average is $545.89. The company has a market cap of $512.15 billion, a PE ratio of 39.39, a P/E/G ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 1.02. Mastercard Incorporated has a twelve month low of $428.86 and a twelve month high of $594.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.81, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 1.11.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The credit services provider reported $3.73 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.57 by $0.16. The company had revenue of $7.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.12 billion. Mastercard had a net margin of 45.21% and a return on equity of 196.87%. The firm's revenue was up 14.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $3.31 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 8th. Investors of record on Wednesday, July 9th will be paid a dividend of $0.76 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, July 9th. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.54%. Mastercard's dividend payout ratio is currently 21.32%.

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.