Stonebridge Financial Group LLC Boosts Stock Position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Stonebridge Financial Group LLC increased its stake in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 1.3% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 8,966 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after buying an additional 119 shares during the period. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $4,914,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in MA. Brighton Jones LLC grew its stake in shares of Mastercard by 42.3% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 6,824 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $3,594,000 after buying an additional 2,028 shares during the last quarter. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG grew its stake in shares of Mastercard by 11.8% in the 4th quarter. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG now owns 70,472 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $37,108,000 after buying an additional 7,452 shares during the last quarter. Verus Capital Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Mastercard by 11.5% in the 4th quarter. Verus Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,325 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $698,000 after buying an additional 137 shares during the last quarter. Flputnam Investment Management Co. boosted its stake in Mastercard by 2.7% during the 4th quarter. Flputnam Investment Management Co. now owns 23,415 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $12,330,000 after purchasing an additional 608 shares during the last quarter. Finally, SVB Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in Mastercard during the 4th quarter valued at $8,118,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Julius Genachowski sold 310 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $561.00, for a total value of $173,910.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 8,323 shares in the company, valued at $4,669,203. The trade was a 3.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Sandra A. Arkell sold 150 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $569.45, for a total value of $85,417.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 3,555 shares in the company, valued at $2,024,394.75. The trade was a 4.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 36,383 shares of company stock worth $19,035,108 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

Mastercard Price Performance

Shares of Mastercard stock opened at $552.02 on Friday. Mastercard Incorporated has a one year low of $428.86 and a one year high of $594.71. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $563.13 and its 200 day moving average is $545.44. The stock has a market cap of $503.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.71, a P/E/G ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.81, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a current ratio of 1.11.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last posted its quarterly 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 return on equity of 196.87% and a net margin of 45.21%. The business had revenue of $7.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.12 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $3.31 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 14.2% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 earnings per share for the current year.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 8th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 9th will be given a $0.76 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 9th. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.55%. Mastercard’s payout ratio is 21.32%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have commented on MA shares. Monness Crespi & Hardt downgraded Mastercard from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $633.00 target price on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. Citigroup increased their target price on Mastercard from $650.00 to $652.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, May 5th. Tigress Financial reiterated a “strong-buy” rating on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Monday, March 10th. Finally, KeyCorp increased their target price on Mastercard from $630.00 to $635.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $611.50.

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.