Blue Trust Inc. Boosts Stock Position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Blue Trust Inc. raised its stake in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 89.6% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 10,851 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 5,128 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc.’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $5,358,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Mogy Joel R Investment Counsel Inc. raised its stake in shares of Mastercard by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter. Mogy Joel R Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 39,522 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $19,516,000 after buying an additional 183 shares in the last quarter. Moss Adams Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Mastercard by 9.7% during the 3rd quarter. Moss Adams Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,559 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $1,264,000 after buying an additional 227 shares in the last quarter. Generate Investment Management Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Mastercard during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $6,318,000. Net Worth Advisory Group purchased a new position in shares of Mastercard during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $743,000. Finally, Stratos Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 41.0% in the 3rd quarter. Stratos Investment Management LLC now owns 20,328 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $10,038,000 after acquiring an additional 5,915 shares during the period. 97.28% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Mastercard Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:MA opened at $516.45 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $480.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 41.05, a PEG ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.95, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a current ratio of 1.14. Mastercard Incorporated has a one year low of $359.77 and a one year high of $518.00. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $486.90 and its 200 day simple moving average is $464.21.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The credit services provider reported $3.59 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.51 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $6.96 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.85 billion. Mastercard had a return on equity of 179.78% and a net margin of 46.45%. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, October 9th. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.51%. Mastercard’s payout ratio is currently 20.99%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have weighed in on MA. Argus raised Mastercard to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. Susquehanna lifted their price objective on Mastercard from $535.00 to $540.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. Piper Sandler lifted their price objective on Mastercard from $531.00 to $536.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. William Blair upgraded Mastercard to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Finally, BNP Paribas lowered Mastercard from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $470.00 price target on the stock. in a research note on Tuesday, September 3rd. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have given a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Mastercard presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $524.64.

Insider Activity at Mastercard

In other Mastercard news, CFO J. Mehra Sachin sold 13,439 shares of Mastercard stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $455.00, for a total transaction of $6,114,745.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 27,304 shares in the company, valued at $12,423,320. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, CFO J. Mehra Sachin sold 13,439 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 27,304 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,423,320. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder Foundation Mastercard sold 119,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the insider now directly owns 92,033,308 shares in the company, valued at approximately $43,113,923,465.68. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 340,809 shares of company stock worth $159,610,703. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.