Mastercard Incorporated $MA Stock Position Lowered by Guggenheim Capital LLC

Guggenheim Capital LLC lessened its position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 0.2% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 116,384 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 268 shares during the period. Mastercard makes up 0.6% of Guggenheim Capital LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 24th largest position. Guggenheim Capital LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $63,792,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of MA. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 0.5% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 77,544,675 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $42,503,787,000 after acquiring an additional 365,537 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 4.7% in the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 20,096,979 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $11,015,557,000 after acquiring an additional 907,184 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 38.6% in the 1st quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 13,526,118 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $7,413,936,000 after acquiring an additional 3,765,378 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 65,631.5% in the 1st 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 last quarter. Finally, Nuveen LLC acquired a new position in shares of Mastercard in the 1st quarter worth $4,238,764,000. Institutional investors own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on MA. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on Mastercard from $639.00 to $661.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, August 1st. Wall Street Zen upgraded Mastercard from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, July 18th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft began coverage on Mastercard in a research report on Thursday, July 17th. They set a “buy” rating and a $650.00 price objective for the company. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “buy” rating on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Finally, TD Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $645.00 price target on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Monday, August 11th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-four have assigned a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Mastercard has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $617.93.

Mastercard Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MA opened at $592.88 on Wednesday. Mastercard Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $465.59 and a fifty-two week high of $601.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.41, a current ratio of 1.16 and a quick ratio of 1.16. The stock has a market capitalization of $535.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.98, a P/E/G ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 1.03. The business has a 50-day moving average of $565.00 and a two-hundred day moving average of $556.05.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 31st. The credit services provider reported $4.15 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.05 by $0.10. Mastercard had a return on equity of 200.01% and a net margin of 44.93%.The business had revenue of $8.13 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.95 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $3.50 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 16.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 8th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 9th were issued a $0.76 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, July 9th. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio is 20.50%.

Insider Transactions at Mastercard

In other news, insider Craig Vosburg sold 14,051 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $585.05, for a total value of $8,220,537.55. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 58,451 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $34,196,757.55. This represents a 19.38% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Raj Seshadri sold 1,100 shares of Mastercard stock in a transaction on Friday, June 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $546.77, for a total value of $601,447.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 12,921 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,064,815.17. The trade was a 7.85% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 56,269 shares of company stock worth $30,634,699. 0.09% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.