Strategic Financial Concepts LLC Sells 57,255 Shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Strategic Financial Concepts LLC reduced its position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA - Free Report) by 99.3% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 416 shares of the credit services provider's stock after selling 57,255 shares during the period. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC's holdings in Mastercard were worth $228,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. NewSquare Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Mastercard in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Measured Risk Portfolios Inc. purchased a new stake in Mastercard in the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. 10Elms LLP purchased a new stake in Mastercard in the 4th quarter valued at $33,000. Navigoe LLC purchased a new stake in Mastercard in the 4th quarter valued at $33,000. Finally, Truvestments Capital LLC raised its position in Mastercard by 62.5% in the 4th quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC now owns 65 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently commented on MA. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Friday, June 6th. Tigress Financial reissued a "strong-buy" rating on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Monday, March 10th. UBS Group increased their price target on Mastercard from $660.00 to $670.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 3rd. Wolfe Research set a $655.00 price target on Mastercard in a research report on Monday, June 23rd. Finally, Monness Crespi & Hardt lowered Mastercard from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $611.50.

Mastercard Price Performance

NYSE MA traded up $5.01 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $566.53. The company had a trading volume of 1,528,739 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,670,606. Mastercard Incorporated has a 52 week low of $428.86 and a 52 week high of $594.71. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $566.83 and a 200 day simple moving average of $546.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.81, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a current ratio of 1.11. The firm has a market capitalization of $516.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.73, a PEG ratio of 2.47 and a beta of 1.02.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA - Get Free Report) last issued its 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 return on equity of 196.87% and a net margin of 45.21%. The business had revenue of $7.25 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.12 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $3.31 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 14.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 earnings per share for the current year.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 8th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 9th will be paid a $0.76 dividend. The ex-dividend date 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%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Mastercard news, Director Julius Genachowski sold 310 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $561.00, for a total value of $173,910.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 8,323 shares in the company, valued at $4,669,203. This trade represents a 3.59% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Craig Vosburg sold 14,051 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $585.05, for a total value of $8,220,537.55. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 58,451 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $34,196,757.55. This represents a 19.38% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 38,441 shares of company stock worth $20,173,035 over the last quarter. Insiders own 0.09% of the company's stock.

Mastercard 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.