Vulcan Value Partners LLC Lowers Holdings in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Key Points

• Vulcan Value Partners LLC reduced its stake in Mastercard Incorporated by 12.3%, owning 574,345 shares after selling 80,800 shares during the first quarter.
• Mastercard reported earnings of $4.15 per share for the last quarter, exceeding analysts' expectations of $4.05, alongside a revenue increase of 16.8% year-over-year.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.76 per share, with a dividend yield of 0.5%, reflecting a payout ratio of 21.32%.

Vulcan Value Partners LLC reduced its position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA - Free Report) by 12.3% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 574,345 shares of the credit services provider's stock after selling 80,800 shares during the quarter. Mastercard comprises about 5.9% of Vulcan Value Partners LLC's holdings, making the stock its 7th biggest holding. Vulcan Value Partners LLC owned 0.06% of Mastercard worth $314,816,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Baker Avenue Asset Management LP lifted its position in Mastercard by 12.0% during the first quarter. Baker Avenue Asset Management LP now owns 2,085 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $1,143,000 after purchasing an additional 224 shares during the last quarter. Heritage Wealth Advisors lifted its position in Mastercard by 2.3% during the first quarter. Heritage Wealth Advisors now owns 110,594 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $60,619,000 after purchasing an additional 2,503 shares during the last quarter. Blueshift Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in Mastercard during the first quarter valued at approximately $416,000. Strategic Advocates LLC lifted its position in Mastercard by 3.0% during the first quarter. Strategic Advocates LLC now owns 689 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $378,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MONECO Advisors LLC lifted its position in Mastercard by 10.6% during the first quarter. MONECO Advisors LLC now owns 3,210 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $1,759,000 after purchasing an additional 307 shares during the last quarter. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MA has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Evercore ISI assumed coverage on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. They set an "in-line" rating and a $550.00 target price for the company. 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 report on Thursday, July 17th. Wolfe Research set a $655.00 price objective on shares of Mastercard in a report on Monday, June 23rd. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded shares of Mastercard from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Monday, July 14th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $625.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-five have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Mastercard has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $615.33.

Insider Buying and Selling at Mastercard

In related news, insider Linda Pistecchia Kirkpatrick sold 958 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $560.00, for a total value of $536,480.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 23,624 shares in the company, valued at $13,229,440. The trade was a 3.90% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Raj Seshadri sold 1,100 shares of the company's 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 transaction, the insider owned 12,921 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,064,815.17. The trade was a 7.85% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 38,753 shares of company stock valued at $20,351,084 over the last 90 days. 0.09% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Mastercard Stock Down 1.2%

Shares of NYSE:MA traded down $6.74 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $559.73. The company's stock had a trading volume of 3,316,713 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,427,760. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $564.58 and a 200-day moving average of $551.95. The firm has a market capitalization of $510.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.74, a PEG ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 1.03. The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.41. Mastercard Incorporated has a 12-month low of $439.59 and a 12-month high of $594.71.

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 for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $4.05 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $8.13 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.95 billion. Mastercard had a net margin of 44.93% and a return on equity of 200.01%. The company's revenue was up 16.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.50 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 earnings per share for the current year.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

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

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.