USS Investment Management Ltd Cuts Stock Holdings in Mastercard Incorporated $MA

Key Points

• USS Investment Management Ltd reduced its stake in Mastercard by 16.9%, selling 26,984 shares and holding 132,405 shares valued at approximately $72.57 million as of the latest filing.
• Mastercard's recent quarterly earnings surpassed expectations, with earnings per share of $4.15 and revenues of $8.13 billion, showing a 16.8% year-over-year increase.
• The company declared a dividend of $0.76 per share, resulting in an annualized dividend yield of 0.5%, indicating a payout ratio of 20.50%.

USS Investment Management Ltd trimmed its stake in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA - Free Report) by 16.9% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 132,405 shares of the credit services provider's stock after selling 26,984 shares during the period. USS Investment Management Ltd's holdings in Mastercard were worth $72,567,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd grew its stake in Mastercard by 0.7% during the first quarter. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd now owns 484,380 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $265,498,000 after acquiring an additional 3,136 shares in the last quarter. Rise Advisors LLC lifted its position in Mastercard by 5.5% during the first quarter. Rise Advisors LLC now owns 1,028 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $564,000 after purchasing an additional 54 shares during the last quarter. Petrus Trust Company LTA lifted its position in Mastercard by 0.3% during the first quarter. Petrus Trust Company LTA now owns 80,658 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $44,210,000 after purchasing an additional 280 shares during the last quarter. Plancorp LLC lifted its position in Mastercard by 103.6% during the first quarter. Plancorp LLC now owns 5,467 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $2,996,000 after purchasing an additional 2,782 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nissay Asset Management Corp Japan ADV lifted its position in Mastercard by 0.4% during the first quarter. Nissay Asset Management Corp Japan ADV now owns 103,017 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $56,466,000 after purchasing an additional 434 shares during the last quarter. 97.28% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Mastercard Trading Up 0.6%

Shares of Mastercard stock traded up $3.27 during trading on Monday, hitting $587.49. The stock had a trading volume of 1,948,132 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,229,058. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $573.10 and its 200-day simple moving average is $557.69. The stock has a market cap of $531.10 billion, a PE ratio of 39.62, a PEG ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 0.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.41, a current ratio of 1.16 and a quick ratio of 1.16. Mastercard Incorporated has a 12 month low of $465.59 and a 12 month high of $601.77.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The credit services provider reported $4.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.05 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $8.13 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.95 billion. Mastercard had a net margin of 44.93% and a return on equity of 200.01%. The business's revenue was up 16.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $3.50 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 8th. Investors of record on Wednesday, July 9th were issued a dividend of $0.76 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, July 9th. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.5%. Mastercard's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 20.50%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have commented on MA. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $639.00 to $661.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded shares of Mastercard from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, July 14th. Wolfe Research set a $655.00 price objective on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Monday, June 23rd. Truist Financial lowered their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $640.00 to $612.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 17th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft started coverage on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Thursday, July 17th. They set a "buy" rating and a $650.00 price objective for the company. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-four have issued a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $626.54.

Insider Activity at Mastercard

In related news, CFO J. Mehra Sachin sold 17,263 shares of Mastercard stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $591.00, for a total transaction of $10,202,433.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 31,234 shares in the company, valued at $18,459,294. This trade represents a 35.60% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Craig Vosburg sold 9,428 shares of Mastercard stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $353.05, for a total transaction of $3,328,555.40. Following the sale, the insider owned 58,451 shares of the company's stock, valued at $20,636,125.55. The trade was a 13.89% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 59,481 shares of company stock worth $32,616,595 over the last ninety days. 0.09% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.