Lagoda Investment Management L.P. Buys 1,260 Shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Lagoda Investment Management L.P. increased its holdings in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA - Free Report) by 46.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 3,954 shares of the credit services provider's stock after buying an additional 1,260 shares during the period. Mastercard comprises approximately 1.1% of Lagoda Investment Management L.P.'s holdings, making the stock its 19th biggest position. Lagoda Investment Management L.P.'s holdings in Mastercard were worth $2,082,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $6,022,224,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in Mastercard during the 4th quarter valued at $837,017,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC boosted its position in Mastercard by 79,739.7% during the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,555,277 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $818,962,000 after acquiring an additional 1,553,329 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp increased its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 15.2% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 9,149,181 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $4,817,684,000 after purchasing an additional 1,207,787 shares during the period. Finally, Sanders Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the fourth quarter valued at about $617,303,000. Institutional investors own 97.28% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Mastercard

In related news, CEO Michael Miebach sold 15,775 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $550.16, for a total value of $8,678,774.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 84,871 shares in the company, valued at approximately $46,692,629.36. This trade represents a 15.67% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Edward Grunde Mclaughlin sold 7,132 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $534.68, for a total transaction of $3,813,337.76. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 34,524 shares of the company's stock, 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. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 23,207 shares of company stock valued at $12,664,529. Insiders own 0.10% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have commented on MA. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a "buy" rating and set a $633.00 price target on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. DZ Bank raised Mastercard from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $620.00 target price on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Monness Crespi & Hardt lowered Mastercard from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Tigress Financial reissued a "strong-buy" rating on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Monday, March 10th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on Mastercard from $572.00 to $650.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating 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 assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Mastercard currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $606.25.

Mastercard Stock Up 1.5%

Shares of MA stock traded up $8.43 on Thursday, reaching $581.71. 2,034,196 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,606,629. The company has a market capitalization of $530.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 41.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.06. Mastercard Incorporated has a 12-month low of $428.86 and a 12-month high of $582.93. 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's 50 day moving average price is $533.61 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $534.45.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The credit services provider reported $3.73 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 firm had revenue of $7.25 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.12 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $3.31 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 14.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 earnings per share for the current year.

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.