ING Groep NV Boosts Stock Holdings in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

ING Groep NV lifted its holdings in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 34.5% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,837,373 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 471,020 shares during the period. Mastercard accounts for approximately 7.0% of ING Groep NV’s portfolio, making the stock its 2nd biggest holding. ING Groep NV owned 0.20% of Mastercard worth $1,007,101,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in MA. Brighton Jones LLC grew its position in Mastercard by 42.3% during the fourth 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 in the last quarter. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG grew its position in Mastercard by 11.8% during the fourth 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 in the last quarter. Mascagni Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Mastercard during the fourth quarter worth about $73,000. Trustco Bank Corp N Y acquired a new stake in Mastercard during the fourth quarter worth about $211,000. Finally, ExodusPoint Capital Management LP grew its position in Mastercard by 533.6% during the fourth quarter. ExodusPoint Capital Management LP now owns 10,435 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $5,495,000 after buying an additional 8,788 shares in the last quarter. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Raj Seshadri sold 1,100 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 27th. The stock was 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 in the company, valued at $7,064,815.17. This trade represents a 7.85% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Linda Pistecchia Kirkpatrick sold 959 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $572.86, for a total value of $549,372.74. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 25,540 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,630,844.40. The trade was a 3.62% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 38,753 shares of company stock worth $20,351,084 over the last 90 days. 0.09% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Mastercard Stock Performance

MA opened at $559.73 on Monday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $564.58 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $552.15. Mastercard Incorporated has a 1 year low of $439.59 and a 1 year high of $594.71. The company has a market capitalization of $510.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.74, a P/E/G ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 1.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.41, a current ratio of 1.16 and a quick ratio of 1.16.

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

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 8th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 9th will be issued a $0.76 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 9th. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.5%. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 21.32%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MA has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Friday. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Mastercard from $660.00 to $670.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 3rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft assumed coverage on Mastercard in a research report on Thursday, July 17th. They set a “buy” rating and a $650.00 price target on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “buy” rating on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Friday, June 6th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Mastercard from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, July 18th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-five have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $615.33.

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.