California State Teachers Retirement System Sells 47,090 Shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

California State Teachers Retirement System reduced its position in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 3.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,294,942 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 47,090 shares during the period. Mastercard accounts for approximately 0.8% of California State Teachers Retirement System’s holdings, making the stock its 15th biggest position. California State Teachers Retirement System owned about 0.14% of Mastercard worth $681,878,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Mastercard in the 4th quarter valued at $6,022,224,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of Mastercard during the 4th quarter worth about $837,017,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 79,739.7% during the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,555,277 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $818,962,000 after acquiring an additional 1,553,329 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 15.2% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 9,149,181 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $4,817,684,000 after acquiring an additional 1,207,787 shares during the period. Finally, Sanders Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Mastercard during the 4th quarter worth about $617,303,000. 97.28% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Mastercard news, insider Edward Grunde Mclaughlin sold 7,132 shares of Mastercard stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the insider now owns 34,524 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $18,459,292.32. This trade represents a 17.12 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Michael Miebach sold 15,775 shares of Mastercard stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $550.16, for a total value 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 represents a 15.67 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $618.00 to $665.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Evercore ISI started coverage on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. They set an “in-line” rating and a $550.00 target price for the company. KeyCorp increased their target price on shares of Mastercard from $600.00 to $630.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Mastercard from $590.00 to $610.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, DZ Bank upgraded shares of Mastercard from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $620.00 target price for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $607.96.

Mastercard Stock Down 0.4 %

NYSE:MA opened at $533.26 on Monday. Mastercard Incorporated has a 12-month low of $428.86 and a 12-month high of $582.23. The company has a quick ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68. The firm has a market capitalization of $486.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.39, a P/E/G ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.06. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $534.04 and its 200-day simple moving average is $530.33.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The credit services provider reported $3.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.71 by $0.11. Mastercard had a return on equity of 188.47% and a net margin of 45.71%. Equities research analysts expect that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 earnings per share for the current year.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 9th will be issued a dividend of $0.76 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 9th. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.57%. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio is presently 21.89%.

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.