Retirement Systems of Alabama Sells 3,437 Shares of Mastercard Incorporated $MA

Key Points

• Retirement Systems of Alabama reduced its Mastercard stake by 0.9%, selling 3,437 shares and retaining 359,125 shares valued at approximately $184.4 million. Institutional investors collectively own 97.28% of the company.
• Mastercard exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $5.04 in EPS and $9.28 billion in revenue, with revenue up 14.1% year over year. The company also declared a $0.87-per-share quarterly dividend, representing a 0.6% yield.
• Analyst sentiment remains favorable, with a consensus “Buy” rating and an average price target of $661.93 versus the shares’ $580.26 opening price. However, insiders have sold $40.6 million of stock over the past 90 days, and potential UK litigation adds risk.

Retirement Systems of Alabama trimmed its position in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA - Free Report) by 0.9% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 359,125 shares of the credit services provider's stock after selling 3,437 shares during the quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama's holdings in Mastercard were worth $184,447,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Robinswood Financial LLC purchased a new position in shares of Mastercard during the 1st quarter worth about $25,000. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in Mastercard by 820.0% during the 4th quarter. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. now owns 46 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares during the last quarter. Strive Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in Mastercard in the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Hyposwiss Advisors SA purchased a new stake in Mastercard in the 4th quarter worth about $29,000. Finally, First Pacific Financial lifted its stake in Mastercard by 113.8% in the first quarter. First Pacific Financial now owns 62 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 33 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.28% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Raj Seshadri sold 1,977 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $529.73, for a total transaction of $1,047,276.21. Following the transaction, the insider owned 16,429 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,702,934.17. This trade represents a 10.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider J. Mehra Sachin sold 1,000 shares of Mastercard stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $572.07, for a total value of $572,070.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 39,916 shares of the company's stock, valued at $22,834,746.12. The trade was a 2.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 71,357 shares of company stock worth $40,637,262. 0.09% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Mastercard Price Performance

Shares of MA stock opened at $580.26 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $508.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.92, a P/E/G ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 0.72. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $538.80 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $518.06. Mastercard Incorporated has a one year low of $464.52 and a one year high of $601.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.96, a current ratio of 1.06 and a quick ratio of 1.06.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The credit services provider reported $5.04 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.77 by $0.27. The firm had revenue of $9.28 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.08 billion. Mastercard had a net margin of 46.34% and a return on equity of 239.99%. The company's revenue was up 14.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $4.15 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Mastercard Incorporated will post 19.86 EPS for the current year.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 7th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 9th were given a dividend of $0.87 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, July 9th. This represents a $3.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.6%. Mastercard's payout ratio is 19.14%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have issued reports on MA shares. Piper Sandler assumed coverage on Mastercard in a research report on Monday, June 29th. They set an "overweight" rating and a $597.00 target price for the company. Barclays increased their price target on Mastercard from $640.00 to $660.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, July 31st. KeyCorp raised their price target on Mastercard from $670.00 to $680.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Raymond James Financial restated an "outperform" rating and set a $632.00 price objective on shares of Mastercard in a report on Friday, July 31st. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price objective on Mastercard from $629.00 to $642.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, July 31st. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-five have given a Buy rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $661.93.

Key Headlines Impacting Mastercard

Here are the key news stories impacting Mastercard this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Mastercard is positioning its network for “agentic payments,” in which artificial-intelligence agents make purchases for consumers. Its participation in the Agentic Payments Alliance and CEO Michael Miebach’s comments suggest the company is working to establish standards and capture transaction volume from this emerging market. How Mastercard CEO is preparing for a world where AI agents do the shopping
• Positive Sentiment: Mastercard’s latest quarterly results showed earnings per share of $5.04 and revenue of $9.28 billion, exceeding analyst estimates. Revenue increased 14.1% year over year, reinforcing the company’s growth and profitability profile.
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst sentiment remains favorable, with a consensus “Buy” rating and an average price target of $661.93. However, valuation assessments are mixed: some intrinsic-value models indicate upside, while earnings-based measures suggest MA trades at a premium. Can Mastercard stay cheap as AI payments expand?
• Neutral Sentiment: Mastercard appointed Yasemin Bedir as president of its Eastern Europe, Middle East and Africa region. The change could support regional expansion, but no immediate financial impact was announced. Mastercard appoints Yasemin Bedir as EEMEA president
• Negative Sentiment: A reported UK legal ruling could make millions of people eligible for approximately £70 in compensation related to Mastercard card-fee claims. The potential financial liability and scope of the case remain unclear, but the development adds litigation risk. Mastercard ruling as millions could get compensation
• Negative Sentiment: Chief Business Officer Sachin J. Mehra sold 8,444 shares for roughly $4.87 million across August 19–20. The trades were conducted under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan, reducing their significance as a discretionary bearish signal, although they may weigh modestly on sentiment. Mastercard insider trading filing

Mastercard Company Profile

Mastercard Incorporated is a global payments technology company that operates a network connecting consumers, financial institutions, merchants, governments and businesses in more than 200 countries and territories. The company facilitates electronic payments and transaction processing for credit, debit and prepaid card products carrying the Mastercard brand, while also providing a range of payment-related services to issuers, acquirers and merchants. Its technology and network enable authorization, clearing and settlement of payments and support a broad set of use cases including point-of-sale, e-commerce and mobile payments.

Beyond core transaction processing, Mastercard offers a suite of value-added services such as fraud and risk management, identity and authentication tools, tokenization and digital wallet support, cross-border and commercial payment solutions, and data analytics and consulting services for merchants and financial partners.

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