Marco Investment Management LLC Decreases Position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Marco Investment Management LLC decreased its stake in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 4.8% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 534 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 27 shares during the period. Marco Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $264,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of MA. Highline Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Mastercard in the 3rd quarter worth about $25,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL bought a new position in shares of Mastercard during the second quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Fairway Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Mastercard in the second quarter worth approximately $35,000. First Personal Financial Services bought a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $39,000. Finally, Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Mastercard by 74.0% during the 3rd quarter. Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 87 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $43,000 after acquiring an additional 37 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Mastercard Trading Up 1.1 %

Mastercard stock opened at $520.86 on Monday. Mastercard Incorporated has a one year low of $404.32 and a one year high of $534.03. The stock has a market cap of $478.06 billion, a PE ratio of 39.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.36, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a current ratio of 1.29. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $506.91 and a two-hundred day moving average of $473.83.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The credit services provider reported $3.89 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.73 by $0.16. The firm had revenue of $7.37 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.27 billion. Mastercard had a net margin of 45.26% and a return on equity of 178.27%. Mastercard’s revenue was up 12.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $3.39 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 8th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, October 9th were issued a dividend of $0.66 per share. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.51%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, October 9th. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 19.97%.

Insider Activity at Mastercard

In related news, CMO Venkata R. Madabhushi sold 4,685 shares of Mastercard stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $493.10, for a total transaction of $2,310,173.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer now owns 17,118 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,440,885.80. The trade was a 21.49 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Compass Point assumed coverage on Mastercard in a research report on Wednesday, September 4th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $525.00 target price for the company. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $590.00 to $610.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, November 14th. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $533.00 to $567.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Bank of America raised their target price on shares of Mastercard from $480.00 to $509.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 17th. Finally, Citigroup increased their price objective on Mastercard from $566.00 to $572.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-one have given a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $549.16.

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.