Voleon Capital Management LP Makes New Investment in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Voleon Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm purchased 39,154 shares of the credit services provider's stock, valued at approximately $20,617,000. Mastercard makes up approximately 1.5% of Voleon Capital Management LP's investment portfolio, making the stock its 9th biggest position.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. NewSquare Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Mastercard in the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the fourth quarter valued at $32,000. Marshall Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Mastercard in the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. Truvestments Capital LLC boosted its position in shares of Mastercard by 62.5% in the 4th quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC now owns 65 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares during the period. Finally, FPC Investment Advisory Inc. increased its stake in Mastercard by 483.3% in the 4th quarter. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. now owns 70 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Mastercard

In other Mastercard news, insider Edward Grunde Mclaughlin sold 7,132 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $534.68, for a total value of $3,813,337.76. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 34,524 shares in the company, valued at $18,459,292.32. This represents a 17.12 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Michael Miebach sold 15,775 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the chief executive officer now owns 84,871 shares of the company's stock, 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 insiders.

Mastercard Trading Up 2.3 %

Shares of NYSE:MA traded up $12.55 during trading on Friday, reaching $559.18. The stock had a trading volume of 2,632,574 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,614,804. Mastercard Incorporated has a 52 week low of $428.86 and a 52 week high of $582.23. 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 firm's fifty day moving average is $532.33 and its 200 day moving average is $531.37. The stock has a market cap of $509.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.26, a P/E/G ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.06.

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

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 9th will be issued a $0.76 dividend. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.54%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 9th. Mastercard's dividend payout ratio is currently 21.89%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have commented on MA. Macquarie reduced their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $645.00 to $610.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday. Monness Crespi & Hardt cut shares of Mastercard from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. William Blair reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Citigroup raised their target price on Mastercard from $584.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on Mastercard from $572.00 to $650.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Mastercard has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $606.18.

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.