J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG Sells 5,142 Shares of Mastercard Incorporated $MA

J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG cut its stake in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 2.6% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 194,046 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 5,142 shares during the period. Mastercard accounts for about 1.9% of J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 7th biggest holding. J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $109,037,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Kingstone Capital Partners Texas LLC bought a new stake in shares of Mastercard in the 2nd quarter valued at about $11,421,213,000. Nuveen LLC acquired a new position in Mastercard during the first quarter worth approximately $4,238,764,000. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its position in shares of Mastercard by 38.6% in the first quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 13,526,118 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $7,413,936,000 after buying an additional 3,765,378 shares during the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its position in shares of Mastercard by 3,493.6% in the second quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 934,110 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $524,914,000 after buying an additional 908,116 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its stake in shares of Mastercard by 4.7% during 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 period. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Mastercard Trading Up 1.0%

Shares of MA stock opened at $574.40 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $519.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.73, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.33 and a beta of 0.97. Mastercard Incorporated has a 1 year low of $465.59 and a 1 year high of $601.77. The company has a current ratio of 1.16, a quick ratio of 1.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.41. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $579.73 and a 200 day simple moving average of $561.01.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The credit services provider reported $4.15 earnings per share (EPS) 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 company had revenue of $8.13 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.95 billion. Mastercard’s quarterly revenue was up 16.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $3.50 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 7th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 9th will be given a $0.76 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 9th. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.5%. Mastercard’s payout ratio is presently 20.50%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently weighed in on MA. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft initiated coverage on Mastercard in a research note on Thursday, July 17th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $650.00 price target on the stock. Seaport Res Ptn raised shares of Mastercard from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 14th. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Mastercard in a report on Friday, June 6th. KeyCorp increased their price target on shares of Mastercard from $635.00 to $660.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, August 1st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $625.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-four have assigned a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $630.89.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Mastercard news, Director Julius Genachowski sold 312 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, July 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $570.67, for a total value of $178,049.04. Following the sale, the director owned 8,469 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,833,004.23. This trade represents a 3.55% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO J. Mehra Sachin sold 17,263 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $591.00, for a total value of $10,202,433.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 31,234 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $18,459,294. This trade represents a 35.60% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 35,391 shares of company stock valued at $20,836,514. 0.09% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.