Nebula Research & Development LLC Sells 1,609 Shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Nebula Research & Development LLC cut its holdings in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA - Free Report) by 44.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,978 shares of the credit services provider's stock after selling 1,609 shares during the period. Nebula Research & Development LLC's holdings in Mastercard were worth $1,042,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. NewSquare Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Marshall Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Mastercard in the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Mastercard in the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. Truvestments Capital LLC increased its position in Mastercard by 62.5% during the 4th quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC now owns 65 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 25 shares during the period. Finally, CoreFirst Bank & Trust bought a new stake in shares of Mastercard in the fourth quarter valued at about $37,000. Institutional investors own 97.28% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Mastercard

In other news, insider Edward Grunde Mclaughlin sold 7,132 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $534.68, for a total transaction of $3,813,337.76. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 34,524 shares of the company's stock, valued at $18,459,292.32. This represents a 17.12 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Michael Miebach sold 15,775 shares of Mastercard stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $550.16, for a total transaction of $8,678,774.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 84,871 shares in the company, valued at $46,692,629.36. This trade represents a 15.67 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Mastercard Stock Down 0.2 %

Mastercard stock traded down $1.25 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $546.81. The stock had a trading volume of 2,838,050 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,629,135. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 1.03. Mastercard Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $428.86 and a fifty-two week high of $582.23. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $532.68 and its 200-day simple moving average is $530.73. The firm has a market capitalization of $498.53 billion, a PE ratio of 39.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.06.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The credit services provider reported $3.73 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.57 by $0.16. Mastercard had a net margin of 45.71% and a return on equity of 188.47%. The company had revenue of $7.25 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.12 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $3.31 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 14.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 9th will be paid a $0.76 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 9th. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.56%. Mastercard's payout ratio is presently 21.89%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have issued reports on MA shares. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $633.00 price objective on shares of Mastercard in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. DZ Bank upgraded Mastercard from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $620.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. KeyCorp upped their target price on Mastercard from $600.00 to $630.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Monness Crespi & Hardt cut Mastercard from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Finally, Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $584.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Six equities research 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 stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $607.96.

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.