United Asset Strategies Inc. Boosts Holdings in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

United Asset Strategies Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 3.1% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 37,609 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,148 shares during the period. Mastercard accounts for about 1.7% of United Asset Strategies Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 12th largest position. United Asset Strategies Inc.’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $18,572,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Goldstein Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Mastercard by 1.3% during the 3rd quarter. Goldstein Advisors LLC now owns 1,516 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $749,000 after buying an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. McLean Asset Management Corp lifted its position in shares of Mastercard by 1.3% in the third quarter. McLean Asset Management Corp now owns 1,677 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $834,000 after acquiring an additional 21 shares in the last quarter. Oldfather Financial Services LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 2.6% during the 3rd quarter. Oldfather Financial Services LLC now owns 827 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $408,000 after purchasing an additional 21 shares during the last quarter. Quilter Plc grew its position in shares of Mastercard by 2.8% in the second quarter. Quilter Plc now owns 801 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $353,000 after purchasing an additional 22 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in 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 buying an additional 22 shares in the last quarter. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Piper Sandler boosted their price target on shares of Mastercard from $531.00 to $536.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on Mastercard from $532.00 to $533.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Robert W. Baird raised their target price on Mastercard from $545.00 to $575.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. BNP Paribas cut shares of Mastercard from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $470.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Tuesday, September 3rd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $520.00 price target on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Wednesday, August 14th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have assigned a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Mastercard currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $525.68.

Insider Activity

In other Mastercard news, CMO Venkata R. Madabhushi sold 4,685 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $489.86, for a total value of $2,294,994.10. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 15,031 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,363,085.66. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, CMO Venkata R. Madabhushi sold 4,685 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, September 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $489.86, for a total value of $2,294,994.10. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 15,031 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,363,085.66. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CFO J. Mehra Sachin sold 13,439 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $455.00, for a total value of $6,114,745.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 27,304 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,423,320. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 340,809 shares of company stock valued at $159,610,703. Company insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Mastercard Price Performance

Shares of MA stock traded down $10.15 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $503.54. 2,312,380 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,427,997. The firm has a market cap of $465.19 billion, a PE ratio of 38.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.95, a current ratio of 1.14 and a quick ratio of 1.14. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $494.33 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $466.27. Mastercard Incorporated has a 1-year low of $373.11 and a 1-year high of $527.90.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The credit services provider reported $3.59 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.51 by $0.08. Mastercard had a net margin of 46.45% and a return on equity of 179.78%. The business had revenue of $6.96 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.85 billion. On average, equities research analysts expect that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 8th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, October 9th will be given a $0.66 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, October 9th. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.52%. Mastercard’s payout ratio is currently 20.18%.

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.