Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC Raises Holdings in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA - Free Report) by 4.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 42,128 shares of the credit services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 1,653 shares during the quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC's holdings in Mastercard were worth $22,183,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. NewSquare Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Mastercard during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Mastercard during the fourth quarter worth $32,000. Marshall Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. Truvestments Capital LLC boosted its position in shares of Mastercard by 62.5% in the 4th quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC now owns 65 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. Finally, FPC Investment Advisory Inc. grew its stake in Mastercard by 483.3% during the 4th quarter. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. now owns 70 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 97.28% of the company's stock.

Mastercard Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MA traded down $2.20 during trading on Friday, hitting $533.26. The company had a trading volume of 2,006,113 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,625,192. Mastercard Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $428.86 and a fifty-two week high of $582.23. The company has a quick ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $534.04 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $529.89. The firm has a market capitalization of $486.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.06.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The credit services provider reported $3.82 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.71 by $0.11. Mastercard had a return on equity of 188.47% and a net margin of 45.71%. On average, research analysts expect that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 earnings per share for the current year.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 9th will be issued a $0.76 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 9th. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.57%. Mastercard's payout ratio is currently 21.89%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Mastercard news, CEO Michael Miebach sold 15,775 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction 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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 84,871 shares of the company's stock, valued at $46,692,629.36. This trade represents a 15.67 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Edward Grunde Mclaughlin sold 7,132 shares of Mastercard stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $534.68, for a total value of $3,813,337.76. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 34,524 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,459,292.32. This represents a 17.12 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Evercore ISI assumed coverage on Mastercard in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. They issued an "in-line" rating and a $550.00 price target for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Mastercard from $590.00 to $610.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $584.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Tigress Financial reissued a "strong-buy" rating on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Monday, March 10th. Finally, William Blair restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $607.96.

About Mastercard

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.