Quantitative Investment Management LLC Sells 521 Shares of Mastercard Incorporated $MA

Key Points

• Quantitative Investment Management LLC reduced its stake in Mastercard by 16.1%, now holding 2,723 shares valued at approximately $1.49 million.
• Mastercard's quarterly earnings showed an EPS of $4.15, surpassing estimates, with revenue up 16.8% year-over-year at $8.13 billion.
• Analysts generally rate Mastercard with a consensus of "Moderate Buy" and a target price of $617.93, with some firms adjusting their target prices recently.

Quantitative Investment Management LLC cut its stake in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA - Free Report) by 16.1% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 2,723 shares of the credit services provider's stock after selling 521 shares during the period. Quantitative Investment Management LLC's holdings in Mastercard were worth $1,492,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Keystone Global Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Mastercard in the first quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Measured Risk Portfolios Inc. bought a new stake in Mastercard during the fourth quarter worth approximately $31,000. 10Elms LLP bought a new position in shares of Mastercard in the fourth quarter valued at $33,000. Hughes Financial Services LLC bought a new position in shares of Mastercard in the first quarter valued at $34,000. Finally, Navigoe LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the 4th quarter valued at $33,000. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft assumed coverage on Mastercard in a report on Thursday, July 17th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $650.00 target price on the stock. KeyCorp lifted their target price on Mastercard from $635.00 to $660.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, August 1st. Wolfe Research set a $655.00 target price on Mastercard in a report on Monday, June 23rd. Wall Street Zen upgraded Mastercard from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, July 18th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on Mastercard from $639.00 to $661.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, August 1st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-four have given a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Mastercard currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $617.93.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CFO J. Mehra Sachin sold 17,816 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $586.89, for a total transaction of $10,456,032.24. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 31,234 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,330,922.26. This represents a 36.32% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing 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 stock was sold at an average price of $560.00, for a total value of $536,480.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 23,624 shares of the company's stock, 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. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 56,269 shares of company stock valued at $30,634,699. 0.09% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Mastercard Stock Up 0.0%

Shares of NYSE:MA traded up $0.11 during trading on Thursday, reaching $590.77. 2,159,735 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,798,644. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $566.06 and a 200 day simple moving average of $556.30. The firm has a market cap of $534.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 1.03. Mastercard Incorporated has a 1-year low of $465.59 and a 1-year high of $601.77. The company has a quick ratio of 1.16, a current ratio of 1.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.41.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results 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. The company had revenue of $8.13 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.95 billion. Mastercard had a net margin of 44.93% and a return on equity of 200.01%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 16.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $3.50 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 8th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 9th were issued a dividend of $0.76 per share. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, July 9th. Mastercard's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 20.50%.

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.