Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. Sells 2,971 Shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. lessened its position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA - Free Report) by 10.4% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 25,566 shares of the credit services provider's stock after selling 2,971 shares during the quarter. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD.'s holdings in Mastercard were worth $14,014,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Founders Financial Alliance LLC grew its stake in Mastercard by 2.9% in the fourth quarter. Founders Financial Alliance LLC now owns 676 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $356,000 after purchasing an additional 19 shares in the last quarter. BlackDiamond Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in Mastercard by 2.3% in the fourth quarter. BlackDiamond Wealth Management LLC now owns 846 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $445,000 after purchasing an additional 19 shares in the last quarter. Fi3 FINANCIAL ADVISORS LLC grew its stake in Mastercard by 2.6% in the fourth quarter. Fi3 FINANCIAL ADVISORS LLC now owns 736 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $388,000 after purchasing an additional 19 shares in the last quarter. Strategy Asset Managers LLC grew its stake in Mastercard by 2.1% in the fourth quarter. Strategy Asset Managers LLC now owns 911 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $480,000 after purchasing an additional 19 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Phillips Wealth Planners LLC grew its stake in Mastercard by 1.8% in the first quarter. Phillips Wealth Planners LLC now owns 1,055 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $538,000 after purchasing an additional 19 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.28% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have commented on MA shares. KeyCorp lifted their target price on Mastercard from $630.00 to $635.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a "buy" rating and set a $633.00 target price on shares of Mastercard in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Macquarie dropped 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. Monness Crespi & Hardt cut Mastercard from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Finally, Truist Financial assumed coverage on Mastercard in a report on Monday, June 2nd. They issued a "buy" rating and a $640.00 price target on the stock. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $611.50.

Mastercard Price Performance

Shares of Mastercard stock traded down $13.48 during trading on Friday, hitting $550.04. The stock had a trading volume of 3,221,317 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,666,632. The firm has a market cap of $501.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.57, a P/E/G ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 1.02. Mastercard Incorporated has a 12 month low of $428.86 and a 12 month high of $594.71. The business's 50-day moving average is $568.42 and its 200 day moving average is $547.67. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.81.

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

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 8th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 9th will be issued a dividend of $0.76 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 9th. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.55%. Mastercard's dividend payout ratio is currently 21.32%.

Insider Activity

In other Mastercard news, insider Raj Seshadri sold 1,100 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $546.77, for a total value of $601,447.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 12,921 shares in the company, valued at $7,064,815.17. This trade represents a 7.85% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Linda Pistecchia Kirkpatrick sold 958 shares of Mastercard stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $560.00, for a total transaction of $536,480.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 23,624 shares of the company's stock, valued at $13,229,440. The trade was a 3.90% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 38,753 shares of company stock valued at $20,351,084. Company 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.