Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) Shares Sold by BNP Paribas

BNP Paribas cut its holdings in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA - Free Report) by 2.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 25,980 shares of the credit services provider's stock after selling 558 shares during the quarter. BNP Paribas' holdings in Mastercard were worth $13,680,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MA has been the subject of a number of research reports. Piper Sandler reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $635.00 target price (up previously from $591.00) on shares of Mastercard in a report on Friday, January 31st. Raymond James reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $640.00 price objective (up previously from $614.00) on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Friday, January 31st. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $633.00 target price on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Mastercard from $590.00 to $610.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Macquarie cut 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. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $606.25.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Edward Grunde Mclaughlin sold 7,132 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the insider now owns 34,524 shares of the company's stock, valued at $18,459,292.32. The trade was a 17.12 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Michael Miebach sold 15,775 shares of the 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 of the company's stock, valued at approximately $46,692,629.36. The trade was a 15.67 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.10% of the company's stock.

Mastercard Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:MA traded down $1.23 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $559.89. 2,340,765 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,607,705. The stock has a market capitalization of $510.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.31, a PEG ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.06. Mastercard Incorporated has a one year low of $428.86 and a one year 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 business's fifty day moving average is $532.24 and its 200-day moving average is $532.12.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results 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. The company had revenue of $7.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $7.12 billion. Mastercard had a return on equity of 188.47% and a net margin of 45.71%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 14.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $3.31 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 9th will be given a $0.76 dividend. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.54%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 9th. Mastercard's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 21.32%.

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.