956 Shares in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) Bought by SFE Investment Counsel

SFE Investment Counsel purchased a new position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 956 shares of the credit services provider's stock, valued at approximately $524,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. FMR LLC increased its stake in shares of Mastercard by 4.3% in the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 22,267,937 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $11,725,627,000 after purchasing an additional 912,856 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Mastercard by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 18,657,792 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $9,800,202,000 after buying an additional 282,739 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Mastercard in the 4th quarter valued at $6,022,224,000. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its stake in Mastercard by 9.1% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 9,760,740 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $5,139,713,000 after purchasing an additional 817,836 shares during the period. Finally, Northern Trust Corp grew its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 15.2% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 9,149,181 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $4,817,684,000 after buying an additional 1,207,787 shares in the last quarter. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Linda Pistecchia Kirkpatrick sold 959 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $572.86, for a total value of $549,372.74. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 25,540 shares in the company, valued at $14,630,844.40. This trade represents a 3.62% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Raj Seshadri sold 1,100 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, June 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $546.77, for a total transaction of $601,447.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 12,921 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,064,815.17. The trade was a 7.85% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 38,753 shares of company stock valued at $20,351,084. Insiders own 0.09% of the company's stock.

Mastercard Trading Up 0.8%

Shares of MA stock traded up $4.68 during trading on Friday, hitting $568.18. 1,513,080 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,575,199. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.81, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 1.11. The firm has a market capitalization of $518.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.02. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $565.61 and its 200-day moving average price is $549.91. Mastercard Incorporated has a 52-week low of $432.11 and a 52-week high of $594.71.

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

Mastercard Announces Dividend

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the company. UBS Group boosted their price target on Mastercard from $660.00 to $670.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 3rd. Citigroup boosted their target price on Mastercard from $650.00 to $652.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, May 5th. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an "outperform" rating and set a $650.00 target price on shares of Mastercard in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. Macquarie decreased their target price on Mastercard from $645.00 to $610.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Wolfe Research set a $655.00 target price on Mastercard in a report on Monday, June 23rd. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-five have given a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Mastercard presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $612.90.

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.