Realta Investment Advisors Lowers Stock Holdings in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Realta Investment Advisors lessened its position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 87.3% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 775 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 5,343 shares during the quarter. Realta Investment Advisors’ holdings in Mastercard were worth $393,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of MA. Goldstein Advisors LLC increased its stake in Mastercard by 1.3% during the third quarter. Goldstein Advisors LLC now owns 1,516 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $749,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the period. McLean Asset Management Corp lifted its holdings in Mastercard by 1.3% during the 3rd quarter. McLean Asset Management Corp now owns 1,677 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $834,000 after buying an additional 21 shares in the last quarter. Oldfather Financial Services LLC boosted its position in Mastercard by 2.6% in the 3rd quarter. Oldfather Financial Services LLC now owns 827 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $408,000 after buying an additional 21 shares during the period. Quilter Plc grew its stake in shares of Mastercard by 2.8% in the second quarter. Quilter Plc now owns 801 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $353,000 after acquiring an additional 22 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of Mastercard by 0.5% during the third quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,351 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $2,148,000 after acquiring an additional 22 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on MA shares. Barclays lifted their target price on Mastercard from $536.00 to $576.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Macquarie boosted their price objective on Mastercard from $505.00 to $565.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of Mastercard from $593.00 to $580.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday. KeyCorp boosted their price target on shares of Mastercard from $515.00 to $580.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday. Finally, Compass Point started coverage on shares of Mastercard in a report on Wednesday, September 4th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $525.00 price objective on the stock. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty have assigned a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Mastercard has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $537.92.

Insider Activity at Mastercard

In other news, major shareholder Foundation Mastercard sold 119,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $468.46, for a total value of $55,746,740.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 92,033,308 shares in the company, valued at approximately $43,113,923,465.68. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other Mastercard news, CMO Venkata R. Madabhushi sold 4,685 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, September 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $493.10, for a total value of $2,310,173.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief marketing officer now owns 17,118 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,440,885.80. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, major shareholder Foundation Mastercard sold 119,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $468.46, for a total transaction of $55,746,740.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 92,033,308 shares in the company, valued at $43,113,923,465.68. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 340,809 shares of company stock worth $159,610,703 in the last three months. Insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Mastercard Stock Performance

NYSE MA traded up $8.49 during trading on Friday, reaching $508.08. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 3,753,713 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,450,197. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $495.77 and its 200-day moving average price is $466.84. Mastercard Incorporated has a twelve month low of $378.48 and a twelve month high of $527.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.95, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a current ratio of 1.14. The firm has a market cap of $469.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.86, a P/E/G ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 1.10.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The credit services provider reported $3.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.73 by $0.16. Mastercard had a return on equity of 179.78% and a net margin of 46.45%. The firm had revenue of $7.37 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.27 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $3.39 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts anticipate that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 8th. Investors of record on Wednesday, October 9th will be issued a dividend of $0.66 per share. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.52%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, October 9th. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio is presently 20.18%.

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.