Los Angeles Capital Management LLC Decreases Holdings in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Los Angeles Capital Management LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 22.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 635,134 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 182,436 shares during the period. Mastercard accounts for about 1.0% of Los Angeles Capital Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 15th largest holding. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC owned about 0.07% of Mastercard worth $270,891,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. FinTrust Capital Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 26.6% in the 3rd quarter. FinTrust Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,046 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $414,000 after purchasing an additional 220 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. increased its position in Mastercard by 3.6% in the 3rd quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 283,417 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $112,208,000 after acquiring an additional 9,905 shares during the period. Stratos Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in Mastercard by 3.8% in the 3rd quarter. Stratos Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 6,803 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $2,693,000 after acquiring an additional 247 shares during the period. Talbot Financial LLC increased its position in Mastercard by 1.6% in the 3rd quarter. Talbot Financial LLC now owns 14,375 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $5,691,000 after acquiring an additional 227 shares during the period. Finally, Redwood Investments LLC increased its position in Mastercard by 145.8% in the 3rd quarter. Redwood Investments LLC now owns 5,130 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $2,031,000 after acquiring an additional 3,043 shares during the period. 97.28% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, CMO Venkata R. Madabhushi sold 16,037 shares of Mastercard stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $475.94, for a total transaction of $7,632,649.78. Following the sale, the chief marketing officer now owns 12,255 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,832,644.70. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other news, CMO Venkata R. Madabhushi sold 16,037 shares of Mastercard stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $475.94, for a total transaction of $7,632,649.78. Following the sale, the chief marketing officer now owns 12,255 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,832,644.70. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, major shareholder Foundation Mastercard sold 114,000 shares of Mastercard stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $462.57, for a total value of $52,732,980.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 96,767,308 shares in the company, valued at approximately $44,761,653,661.56. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 467,088 shares of company stock valued at $215,249,338. Insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

Mastercard Stock Performance

NYSE MA traded up $0.36 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $442.43. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 2,098,752 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,436,012. The company has a current ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.06. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $470.78 and a 200 day simple moving average of $437.42. Mastercard Incorporated has a 52 week low of $357.85 and a 52 week high of $490.00. The stock has a market cap of $412.74 billion, a PE ratio of 37.36, a PEG ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 1.08.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The credit services provider reported $3.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.22 by $0.09. Mastercard had a net margin of 44.60% and a return on equity of 191.22%. The firm had revenue of $6.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.34 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.80 earnings per share. Mastercard’s revenue was up 10.4% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 9th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 9th will be issued a dividend of $0.66 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 8th. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.60%. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 22.32%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on Mastercard from $525.00 to $545.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 18th. Mizuho dropped their target price on Mastercard from $480.00 to $478.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on Mastercard from $480.00 to $490.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 1st. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on Mastercard from $433.00 to $482.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 11th. Finally, William Blair reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Wednesday, January 31st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $493.55.

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.