Hardman Johnston Global Advisors LLC Raises Holdings in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Hardman Johnston Global Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA - Free Report) by 1.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 187,119 shares of the credit services provider's stock after buying an additional 2,909 shares during the period. Mastercard comprises 2.6% of Hardman Johnston Global Advisors LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 14th biggest holding. Hardman Johnston Global Advisors LLC's holdings in Mastercard were worth $79,808,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of the business. State Street Corp raised its stake in shares of Mastercard by 3.9% during the 1st quarter. State Street Corp now owns 34,759,814 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $12,632,032,000 after buying an additional 1,303,477 shares in the last quarter. Morgan Stanley increased its stake in Mastercard by 17.7% in the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 15,843,692 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $5,509,328,000 after purchasing an additional 2,385,640 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Mastercard in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $3,308,223,000. Northern Trust Corp increased its stake in Mastercard by 2.9% in the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 9,075,358 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $3,593,025,000 after purchasing an additional 251,516 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nuveen Asset Management LLC increased its stake in Mastercard by 3.9% in the 2nd quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC now owns 8,420,213 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $3,311,670,000 after purchasing an additional 318,077 shares in the last quarter. 97.28% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Mastercard

In other Mastercard news, major shareholder Foundation Mastercard sold 200 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $487.25, for a total value of $97,450.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 97,543,308 shares of the company's stock, valued at $47,527,976,823. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other Mastercard news, major shareholder Foundation Mastercard sold 200 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $487.25, for a total value of $97,450.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 97,543,308 shares of the company's stock, valued at $47,527,976,823. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Ajay Bhalla sold 4,000 shares of Mastercard stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $435.00, for a total value of $1,740,000.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 6,235 shares in the company, valued at $2,712,225. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 41,728 shares of company stock valued at $19,479,753 over the last three months. 0.13% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MA has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Mizuho reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $480.00 price objective on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Wednesday, March 27th. Raymond James raised their price objective on Mastercard from $452.00 to $504.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 1st. Evercore ISI raised their price objective on Mastercard from $530.00 to $545.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 26th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on Mastercard from $432.00 to $499.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 1st. Finally, Oppenheimer reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $510.00 price target on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Thursday, February 1st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Mastercard presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $484.82.

Mastercard Trading Down 0.6 %

Shares of MA stock traded down $2.92 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $465.39. 2,486,322 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,435,187. Mastercard Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $357.85 and a fifty-two week high of $490.00. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $471.72 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $431.20. The company has a quick ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.06. The stock has a market cap of $434.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.15, a PEG ratio of 1.78 and a beta of 1.08.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 31st. The credit services provider reported $3.18 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.08 by $0.10. Mastercard had a return on equity of 191.22% and a net margin of 44.60%. The firm had revenue of $6.55 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.46 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.65 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.35 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 9th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 9th will be given a $0.66 dividend. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.57%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 8th. Mastercard's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 22.32%.

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.

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