Dale Q Rice Investment Management Ltd Cuts Stake in Mastercard Incorporated $MA

Dale Q Rice Investment Management Ltd decreased its stake in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 50.0% during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,861 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 2,861 shares during the quarter. Mastercard comprises 1.3% of Dale Q Rice Investment Management Ltd’s holdings, making the stock its 16th biggest position. Dale Q Rice Investment Management Ltd’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $1,590,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of MA. Family Legacy Financial Solutions LLC acquired a new position in Mastercard during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Flaharty Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in Mastercard during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Keystone Global Partners LLC acquired a new position in Mastercard during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Hughes Financial Services LLC acquired a new position in Mastercard during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Finally, 1 North Wealth Services LLC acquired a new position in Mastercard during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $44,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Mastercard Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE MA opened at $561.42 on Friday. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $580.22 and its 200 day moving average price is $563.16. Mastercard Incorporated has a 1 year low of $465.59 and a 1 year high of $601.77. The company has a market capitalization of $507.53 billion, a PE ratio of 37.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.25 and a beta of 0.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.41, a quick ratio of 1.16 and a current ratio of 1.16.

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

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 7th. Investors of record on Thursday, October 9th will be issued a dividend of $0.76 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, October 9th. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.5%. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio is 20.50%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MA has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. KeyCorp upped their price target on shares of Mastercard from $635.00 to $660.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $650.00 to $656.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, August 1st. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $639.00 to $661.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $625.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-five have given a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Mastercard presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $634.04.

Insider Transactions at Mastercard

In related news, CFO J. Mehra Sachin sold 17,263 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $591.00, for a total transaction of $10,202,433.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 31,234 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $18,459,294. This represents a 35.60% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

Mastercard 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.