131,606 Shares in Mastercard Incorporated $MA Acquired by Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC

Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC acquired a new position in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) in the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund acquired 131,606 shares of the credit services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $67,593,000. Mastercard accounts for about 1.3% of Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 11th largest position.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of MA. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. grew its stake in Mastercard by 820.0% in the 4th quarter. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. now owns 46 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 41 shares during the last quarter. Strive Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in Mastercard during the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Hyposwiss Advisors SA purchased a new stake in shares of Mastercard in the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. Robinswood Financial LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Mastercard in the first quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Finally, Bay Harbor Wealth Management LLC grew its position in shares of Mastercard by 54.1% in the fourth quarter. Bay Harbor Wealth Management LLC now owns 57 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on MA. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on Mastercard from $679.00 to $681.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Mastercard from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Monday, August 17th. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on shares of Mastercard from $660.00 to $680.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price objective on Mastercard from $629.00 to $642.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, July 31st. Finally, Raymond James Financial reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $632.00 target price on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-five have issued a Buy rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $664.71.

Mastercard Stock Performance

NYSE MA opened at $595.51 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.96, a current ratio of 1.06 and a quick ratio of 1.06. Mastercard Incorporated has a 1-year low of $464.52 and a 1-year high of $601.62. The firm has a market capitalization of $521.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.76, a P/E/G ratio of 1.79 and a beta of 0.71. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $549.15 and its 200-day simple moving average is $519.51.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The credit services provider reported $5.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.77 by $0.27. Mastercard had a net margin of 46.34% and a return on equity of 239.99%. The firm had revenue of $9.28 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.08 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $4.15 earnings per share. Mastercard’s revenue was up 14.1% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that Mastercard Incorporated will post 19.86 EPS for the current year.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 7th. Investors of record on Thursday, July 9th were given a $0.87 dividend. This represents a $3.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, July 9th. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio is 19.14%.

Key Stories Impacting Mastercard

Here are the key news stories impacting Mastercard this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Mastercard and QNB Group processed Syria’s first international card transaction in more than 15 years. The milestone marks the reopening and modernization of Syria’s international payments infrastructure following the lifting of certain U.S. restrictions. Although the near-term financial contribution is likely to be small, the development creates a potential new market and demonstrates Mastercard’s ability to support payments expansion. Syria marks first international card transaction in more than 15 years with Mastercard and QNB Group
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts have given Mastercard a consensus “Buy” rating. Continued Wall Street support adds to the bullish backdrop, though the rating itself may already be reflected in the share price. Mastercard Incorporated Given Consensus Rating of Buy by Analysts
• Positive Sentiment: Pershing Square founder Bill Ackman added Mastercard to the hedge fund’s portfolio. The purchase may improve investor sentiment by signaling confidence from a prominent long-term investor, although it does not change Mastercard’s operating outlook. Bill Ackman Just Made His Biggest Portfolio Overhaul in Years
• Positive Sentiment: A partnership with Klook targets growing travel and experiences spending across Asia Pacific. Mastercard cardholder benefits and additional travel-related payment touchpoints could support transaction volume in a high-growth region. Klook and Mastercard collaborate to enhance travelers’ experiences across Asia Pacific
• Neutral Sentiment: Mastercard will participate in the Goldman Sachs Communacopia + Technology Conference on September 10, where CFO Ling Hai is scheduled to speak. Investors may look for updates on growth, margins and capital allocation, but no new financial information was provided. Mastercard to Participate in Upcoming Investor Conference
• Neutral Sentiment: Mastercard’s name appears as a supporter of an XRPL/Ripple hackathon, but reports caution that the sponsorship does not represent a new cryptocurrency partnership or major product launch. Mastercard’s Name Is on the Ripple Hackathon, But Don’t Get Ahead of Yourself

Insider Activity

In other Mastercard news, insider Sandra A. Arkell sold 200 shares of Mastercard stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $540.00, for a total transaction of $108,000.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 3,322 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,793,880. The trade was a 5.68% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Linda Pistecchia Kirkpatrick sold 4,280 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $570.31, for a total value of $2,440,926.80. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 31,179 shares in the company, valued at approximately $17,781,695.49. This represents a 12.07% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 71,357 shares of company stock valued at $40,637,262. 0.09% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About Mastercard

Mastercard Incorporated is a global payments technology company that operates a network connecting consumers, financial institutions, merchants, governments and businesses in more than 200 countries and territories. The company facilitates electronic payments and transaction processing for credit, debit and prepaid card products carrying the Mastercard brand, while also providing a range of payment-related services to issuers, acquirers and merchants. Its technology and network enable authorization, clearing and settlement of payments and support a broad set of use cases including point-of-sale, e-commerce and mobile payments.

Beyond core transaction processing, Mastercard offers a suite of value-added services such as fraud and risk management, identity and authentication tools, tokenization and digital wallet support, cross-border and commercial payment solutions, and data analytics and consulting services for merchants and financial partners.