West Coast Financial LLC Reduces Position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

West Coast Financial LLC lowered its holdings in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA - Free Report) by 2.8% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 38,261 shares of the credit services provider's stock after selling 1,082 shares during the period. Mastercard comprises 2.4% of West Coast Financial LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 7th largest holding. West Coast Financial LLC's holdings in Mastercard were worth $20,971,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Addison Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 3.8% in the 4th quarter. Addison Advisors LLC now owns 493 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $260,000 after acquiring an additional 18 shares in the last quarter. Capital Investment Services of America Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 4.2% in the 4th quarter. Capital Investment Services of America Inc. now owns 475 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $250,000 after acquiring an additional 19 shares in the last quarter. Augustine Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Augustine Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,797 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $946,000 after acquiring an additional 19 shares in the last quarter. Richard W. Paul & Associates LLC increased its position in shares of Mastercard by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Richard W. Paul & Associates LLC now owns 2,245 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $1,182,000 after purchasing an additional 19 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Founders Financial Alliance LLC increased its position in shares of Mastercard by 2.9% during the 4th quarter. Founders Financial Alliance LLC now owns 676 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $356,000 after purchasing an additional 19 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.28% of the company's stock.

Mastercard Trading Up 0.1%

MA stock traded up $0.63 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $584.76. 1,479,651 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,603,057. Mastercard Incorporated has a 52-week low of $428.86 and a 52-week high of $588.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 1.03. The business has a 50 day moving average of $545.93 and a 200-day moving average of $540.81. The firm has a market capitalization of $533.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.10, a P/E/G ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.05.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The credit services provider reported $3.73 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.57 by $0.16. Mastercard had a return on equity of 188.47% and a net margin of 45.71%. The business had revenue of $7.25 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.12 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $3.31 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 14.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Mastercard

In other news, CEO Michael Miebach sold 15,775 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $550.16, for a total value of $8,678,774.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 84,871 shares in the company, valued at approximately $46,692,629.36. This represents a 15.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Sandra A. Arkell sold 150 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $569.45, for a total value of $85,417.50. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 3,555 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,024,394.75. The trade was a 4.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 23,207 shares of company stock worth $12,664,529 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.09% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MA has been the topic of several recent research reports. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on Mastercard from $630.00 to $655.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 27th. Monness Crespi & Hardt lowered Mastercard from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $633.00 price objective on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. KeyCorp increased their price objective on Mastercard from $630.00 to $635.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Macquarie reduced their price objective on Mastercard from $645.00 to $610.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $610.00.

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.