Thornburg Investment Management Inc. Reduces Holdings in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Key Points

• Thornburg Investment Management Inc. reduced its stake in Mastercard by 2.2%, owning 113,970 shares valued at approximately $62.47 million at the end of Q1.
• Several institutional investors, including Measured Risk Portfolios Inc. and Navigoe LLC, have recently initiated positions in Mastercard, highlighting ongoing investor interest in the company.
• Mastercard reported a 14.2% increase in revenue year-over-year, achieving earnings of $3.73 per share, surpassing analysts' expectations.

Thornburg Investment Management Inc. cut its holdings in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA - Free Report) by 2.2% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 113,970 shares of the credit services provider's stock after selling 2,531 shares during the period. Thornburg Investment Management Inc.'s holdings in Mastercard were worth $62,469,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in MA. Whalerock Point Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Mastercard by 1.3% during the fourth quarter. Whalerock Point Partners LLC now owns 14,678 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $7,729,000 after buying an additional 185 shares during the last quarter. Fortis Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Mastercard by 9.4% in the first quarter. Fortis Advisors LLC now owns 871 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $477,000 after acquiring an additional 75 shares during the period. Canandaigua National Trust Co of Florida lifted its holdings in Mastercard by 36.4% in the first quarter. Canandaigua National Trust Co of Florida now owns 693 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $380,000 after acquiring an additional 185 shares during the period. Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Mastercard by 18.0% in the first quarter. Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 6,870 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $3,766,000 after acquiring an additional 1,047 shares during the period. Finally, Baldwin Investment Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Mastercard by 5.7% in the fourth quarter. Baldwin Investment Management LLC now owns 1,731 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $911,000 after buying an additional 93 shares during the period. 97.28% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Mastercard Stock Down 1.2%

Shares of Mastercard stock traded down $6.74 during trading on Friday, hitting $559.73. 3,316,713 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,833,365. The firm has a market cap of $510.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.42 and a beta of 1.02. 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 Incorporated has a 52-week low of $439.59 and a 52-week high of $594.71. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $564.67 and its 200 day simple moving average is $551.39.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The credit services provider reported $4.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.05 by $0.10. Mastercard had a return on equity of 196.87% and a net margin of 45.21%. The company had revenue of $8.13 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.95 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $3.50 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 16.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 8th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 9th will be issued a $0.76 dividend. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, July 9th. Mastercard's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 21.32%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently commented on MA shares. UBS Group raised their price objective on Mastercard from $660.00 to $670.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 3rd. Wall Street Zen raised Mastercard from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, July 18th. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Friday, June 6th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft assumed coverage on Mastercard in a research note on Thursday, July 17th. They set a "buy" rating and a $650.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Macquarie decreased their target price on Mastercard from $645.00 to $610.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-five have issued a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $615.33.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Raj Seshadri sold 1,100 shares of Mastercard stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $546.77, for a total transaction of $601,447.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 12,921 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,064,815.17. The trade was a 7.85% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Linda Pistecchia Kirkpatrick sold 958 shares of the business's stock in a transaction 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 completion of the transaction, the insider owned 23,624 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $13,229,440. This represents a 3.90% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 38,753 shares of company stock worth $20,351,084 in the last three months. Insiders own 0.09% of the company's stock.

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.