Gateway Investment Advisers LLC Boosts Stake in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Gateway Investment Advisers LLC raised its position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 3.3% during the first quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 43,912 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after buying an additional 1,393 shares during the quarter. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $24,069,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Mastercard in the fourth quarter valued at $6,022,224,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in Mastercard by 65,631.5% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 8,225,637 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $4,508,636,000 after acquiring an additional 8,213,123 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in Mastercard during the 4th quarter valued at about $837,017,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC grew its position in Mastercard by 79,739.7% in 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 acquiring an additional 1,553,329 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp increased its stake in Mastercard by 15.2% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 9,149,181 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $4,817,684,000 after purchasing an additional 1,207,787 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Mastercard Stock Performance

Shares of Mastercard stock opened at $590.03 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68. Mastercard Incorporated has a 52 week low of $428.86 and a 52 week high of $591.16. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $547.49 and its two-hundred day moving average is $541.73. The firm has a market capitalization of $537.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 42.48, a P/E/G ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.05.

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on MA. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Mastercard from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Mastercard from $660.00 to $670.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Citigroup raised their price target on shares of Mastercard from $650.00 to $652.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, May 5th. Truist Financial started coverage on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Monday, June 2nd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $640.00 price target for the company. Finally, Monness Crespi & Hardt lowered Mastercard from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Mastercard presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $610.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at Mastercard

In related news, CEO Michael Miebach sold 15,775 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 84,871 shares in the company, valued at $46,692,629.36. This trade represents a 15.67% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Edward Grunde Mclaughlin sold 7,132 shares of Mastercard stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the insider now directly owns 34,524 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,459,292.32. This trade represents a 17.12% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 37,258 shares of company stock worth $20,885,067 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

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.