Metropolis Capital Ltd Has $206.77 Million Stake in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Metropolis Capital Ltd lifted its stake in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 23.9% during the first quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 377,235 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 72,790 shares during the period. Mastercard accounts for about 7.7% of Metropolis Capital Ltd’s holdings, making the stock its 7th biggest holding. Metropolis Capital Ltd’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $206,770,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MA. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Mastercard in the 4th quarter worth approximately $6,022,224,000. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in shares of Mastercard by 65,631.5% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 8,225,637 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $4,508,636,000 after purchasing an additional 8,213,123 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the fourth quarter valued at $837,017,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 1,553,329 shares during the period. Finally, Northern Trust Corp raised its holdings in 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 buying an additional 1,207,787 shares during the period. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have commented on the stock. Tigress Financial reiterated a “strong-buy” rating on shares of Mastercard in a report on Monday, March 10th. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Friday, June 6th. Macquarie lowered their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $645.00 to $610.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Wall Street Zen lowered Mastercard from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday. Finally, Evercore ISI started coverage on Mastercard in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. They set an “in-line” rating and a $550.00 price target on the stock. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Mastercard currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $610.00.

Insider Activity at Mastercard

In related news, insider Craig Vosburg sold 14,051 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $585.05, for a total transaction of $8,220,537.55. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 58,451 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $34,196,757.55. This represents a 19.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Edward Grunde Mclaughlin sold 7,132 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $534.68, for a total transaction of $3,813,337.76. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 34,524 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,459,292.32. This represents a 17.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 46,686 shares of company stock worth $26,430,428. Company insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

Mastercard Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE MA opened at $561.50 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 1.03. The firm has a market cap of $511.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.42, a P/E/G ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.05. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $555.17 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $543.88. Mastercard Incorporated has a one year low of $428.86 and a one year high of $594.71.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The credit services provider reported $3.73 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.57 by $0.16. The business had revenue of $7.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.12 billion. Mastercard had a net margin of 45.71% and a return on equity of 188.47%. Mastercard’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $3.31 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 EPS for the current year.

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.