Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) Shares Sold by Values Added Financial LLC

Values Added Financial LLC lowered its stake in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 11.9% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 1,179 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 160 shares during the period. Values Added Financial LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $503,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Hibernia Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the third quarter valued at $27,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL purchased a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the first quarter worth about $25,000. Bollard Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Mastercard in the second quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Barometer Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Mastercard during the third quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Finally, Mascoma Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Mastercard during the third quarter worth approximately $38,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Mastercard Stock Performance

Mastercard stock opened at $481.57 on Friday. 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’s fifty day moving average price is $464.17 and its 200 day moving average price is $426.46. The company has a market capitalization of $449.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.08. Mastercard Incorporated has a 12-month low of $355.82 and a 12-month high of $490.00.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 31st. The credit services provider reported $3.18 EPS 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 for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.46 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.65 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.35 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, December 5th that permits the company to buyback $11.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the credit services provider to buy up to 2.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are usually an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 9th. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 9th will be issued a $0.66 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 8th. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.55%. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio is presently 22.32%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Michael Miebach sold 7,851 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $475.92, for a total transaction of $3,736,447.92. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 47,640 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $22,672,828.80. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Mastercard news, CEO Michael Miebach sold 7,851 shares of Mastercard stock in a transaction on Friday, March 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $475.92, for a total value of $3,736,447.92. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 47,640 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $22,672,828.80. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CMO Venkata R. Madabhushi sold 16,037 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $475.94, for a total transaction of $7,632,649.78. Following the sale, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 12,255 shares in the company, valued at $5,832,644.70. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 50,628 shares of company stock valued at $23,309,067 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have weighed in on the company. Raymond James boosted their price target on Mastercard from $452.00 to $504.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 1st. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Mastercard from $490.00 to $530.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. Monness Crespi & Hardt began coverage on Mastercard in a report on Wednesday, December 20th. They issued a “neutral” rating for the company. Oppenheimer reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $510.00 price objective on shares of Mastercard in a report on Thursday, February 1st. Finally, Tigress Financial boosted their target price on shares of Mastercard from $476.00 to $495.00 and gave the company a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, December 7th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-one have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $479.62.

About Mastercard

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.