Ascent Group LLC Has $11.44 Million Stake in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Ascent Group LLC cut its holdings in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 9.4% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 23,168 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 2,397 shares during the period. Mastercard makes up approximately 0.9% of Ascent Group LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 21st biggest position. Ascent Group LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $11,440,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Fragasso Financial Advisors Inc increased its position in Mastercard by 5.9% in the 2nd quarter. Fragasso Financial Advisors Inc now owns 1,374 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $606,000 after buying an additional 77 shares in the last quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Mastercard by 0.3% in the second quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 17,834 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $7,868,000 after buying an additional 46 shares in the last quarter. Value Partners Investments Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 84.1% during the second quarter. Value Partners Investments Inc. now owns 7,633 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $3,367,000 after buying an additional 3,486 shares during the last quarter. Olistico Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the second quarter worth about $176,000. Finally, Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 5.9% in the 2nd quarter. Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 9,036 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $3,986,000 after acquiring an additional 503 shares during the last quarter. 97.28% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Mastercard Price Performance

Shares of Mastercard stock opened at $532.94 on Monday. Mastercard Incorporated has a 12 month low of $404.32 and a 12 month high of $535.77. The company has a current ratio of 1.29, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.36. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $510.37 and its 200-day moving average price is $476.43. The firm has a market capitalization of $489.15 billion, a PE ratio of 40.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.10.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last posted 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 net margin of 45.26% and a return on equity of 178.27%. The business had revenue of $7.37 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.27 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $3.39 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 12.8% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts forecast that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 8th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, October 9th were issued a $0.66 dividend. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.50%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, October 9th. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 19.97%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MA has been the subject of several analyst reports. Susquehanna increased their target price on shares of Mastercard from $540.00 to $605.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. William Blair restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Monday, November 25th. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Mastercard from $544.00 to $564.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating and set a $575.00 price target (up previously from $565.00) on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Finally, Bank of America boosted their target price on Mastercard from $480.00 to $509.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 17th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $549.16.

Insider Buying and Selling at Mastercard

In other news, CMO Venkata R. Madabhushi sold 4,685 shares of Mastercard stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $489.86, for a total transaction of $2,294,994.10. Following the sale, the chief marketing officer now owns 15,031 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,363,085.66. The trade was a 23.76 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

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.