BluePointe Capital Management LLC Buys 247 Shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

BluePointe Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 51.5% during the first quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 727 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 247 shares during the period. BluePointe Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $399,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of MA. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the fourth quarter valued at about $6,022,224,000. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in shares of Mastercard by 65,631.5% in 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 acquiring an additional 8,213,123 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp lifted its stake in shares of Mastercard by 15.2% in 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 acquiring an additional 1,207,787 shares during the period. Sanders Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Mastercard in the fourth quarter worth approximately $617,303,000. Finally, Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH acquired a new position in shares of Mastercard in the fourth quarter worth approximately $561,313,000. Institutional investors own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Mastercard

In related news, insider Raj Seshadri sold 1,100 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, June 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $546.77, for a total transaction of $601,447.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 12,921 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,064,815.17. This represents a 7.85% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Craig Vosburg sold 9,428 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, June 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $353.05, for a total transaction of $3,328,555.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 58,451 shares in the company, valued at $20,636,125.55. This represents a 13.89% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 38,753 shares of company stock valued at $20,351,084 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

Mastercard Stock Up 0.5%

NYSE:MA opened at $553.12 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.81. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $568.26 and its two-hundred day moving average is $547.98. Mastercard Incorporated has a 52 week low of $428.86 and a 52 week high of $594.71. The stock has a market capitalization of $504.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 1.02.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The credit services provider reported $3.73 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 company’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 EPS for the current year.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on MA shares. Wall Street Zen downgraded Mastercard from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, June 14th. UBS Group upped their price target on Mastercard from $660.00 to $670.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 3rd. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $633.00 price target on shares of Mastercard in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Mastercard in a report on Friday, June 6th. Finally, KeyCorp boosted their price objective on Mastercard from $630.00 to $635.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Seven equities research 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. According to MarketBeat.com, Mastercard presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $611.50.

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.