Elmwood Wealth Management Inc. Reduces Holdings in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Elmwood Wealth Management Inc. decreased its stake in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA - Free Report) by 38.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 3,842 shares of the credit services provider's stock after selling 2,420 shares during the period. Mastercard accounts for about 1.2% of Elmwood Wealth Management Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 23rd largest holding. Elmwood Wealth Management Inc.'s holdings in Mastercard were worth $1,639,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of MA. Cypress Wealth Services LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 2.9% during the 4th quarter. Cypress Wealth Services LLC now owns 864 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $369,000 after buying an additional 24 shares in the last quarter. Syntegra Private Wealth Group LLC raised its position in shares of Mastercard by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. Syntegra Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 1,996 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $851,000 after purchasing an additional 24 shares during the last quarter. Indiana Trust & Investment Management CO raised its position in shares of Mastercard by 4.4% in the 4th quarter. Indiana Trust & Investment Management CO now owns 598 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $255,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. Cassia Capital Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Mastercard by 2.1% in the 3rd quarter. Cassia Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,240 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $491,000 after purchasing an additional 26 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Mastercard by 8.4% in the 3rd quarter. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. now owns 348 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $138,000 after purchasing an additional 27 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 97.28% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MA has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. TD Cowen initiated coverage on Mastercard in a research report on Thursday. They issued a "buy" rating and a $545.00 price target for the company. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on Mastercard from $432.00 to $499.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 1st. Oppenheimer reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $510.00 target price on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Thursday, February 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Mastercard from $504.00 to $520.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday. Finally, Raymond James boosted their target price on Mastercard from $452.00 to $504.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating 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 given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Mastercard presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $485.91.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Mastercard news, major shareholder Foundation Mastercard sold 200 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $487.25, for a total value of $97,450.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 97,543,308 shares in the company, valued at approximately $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 news, CEO Michael Miebach sold 7,851 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $475.92, for a total transaction of $3,736,447.92. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 47,640 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $22,672,828.80. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder Foundation Mastercard sold 200 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $487.25, for a total value of $97,450.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 97,543,308 shares in the company, valued at $47,527,976,823. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 41,728 shares of company stock worth $19,479,753 in the last three months. 0.13% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Mastercard Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:MA traded down $5.59 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $459.79. 1,962,275 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,430,120. Mastercard Incorporated has a 52 week low of $357.85 and a 52 week high of $490.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.06, a current ratio of 1.17 and a quick ratio of 1.17. The firm has a market cap of $428.93 billion, a PE ratio of 38.83, a PEG ratio of 1.77 and a beta of 1.08. The company's 50 day moving average price is $471.81 and its 200-day moving average price is $432.15.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 31st. The credit services provider reported $3.18 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.08 by $0.10. Mastercard had a return on equity of 191.22% and a net margin of 44.60%. The business had revenue of $6.55 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.46 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.65 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.35 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

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

Mastercard 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.