Woodline Partners LP Makes New Investment in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Woodline Partners LP purchased a new position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 49,226 shares of the credit services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $25,921,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Mastercard during the fourth quarter valued at about $6,022,224,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of Mastercard during the 4th quarter valued at about $837,017,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC raised 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 valued at $818,962,000 after buying an additional 1,553,329 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp raised 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 valued at $4,817,684,000 after buying an additional 1,207,787 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sanders Capital LLC bought a new stake in Mastercard in the 4th quarter worth approximately $617,303,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Mastercard Price Performance

MA opened at $580.67 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $538.11 and a 200-day moving average price of $536.73. The firm has a market cap of $529.40 billion, a PE ratio of 41.80, a P/E/G ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.06. Mastercard Incorporated has a 1 year low of $428.86 and a 1 year high of $588.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 1.03.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The credit services provider reported $3.73 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.57 by $0.16. The company had revenue of $7.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.12 billion. Mastercard had a return on equity of 188.47% and a net margin of 45.71%. Mastercard’s revenue was up 14.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $3.31 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other Mastercard news, insider Edward Grunde Mclaughlin sold 7,132 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 19th. The shares were 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 directly owns 34,524 shares in the company, valued at $18,459,292.32. This represents a 17.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Sandra A. Arkell sold 150 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $580.00, for a total value of $87,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 3,255 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,887,900. The trade was a 4.41% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 23,207 shares of company stock valued at $12,664,529 in the last ninety days. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have commented on MA. Monness Crespi & Hardt downgraded shares of Mastercard from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on shares of Mastercard from $618.00 to $665.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. KeyCorp boosted their price target on shares of Mastercard from $630.00 to $635.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. UBS Group reduced their price objective on Mastercard from $660.00 to $640.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Mastercard from $590.00 to $610.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Mastercard presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $606.25.

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.