Mastercard Incorporated $MA Stock Purchased by North Dakota State Investment Board

North Dakota State Investment Board grew its stake in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 3.4% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 24,741 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 820 shares during the period. Mastercard accounts for 0.5% of North Dakota State Investment Board’s holdings, making the stock its 28th largest position. North Dakota State Investment Board’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $13,644,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. State Street Corp increased its stake in shares of Mastercard by 1.3% during the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 36,964,305 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $18,984,867,000 after purchasing an additional 486,283 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC lifted its holdings in Mastercard by 10.4% during the 1st quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 5,123,041 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $2,559,779,000 after purchasing an additional 480,725 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in Mastercard by 1.0% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 4,225,359 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $2,111,216,000 after purchasing an additional 42,871 shares during the last quarter. Amundi lifted its holdings in Mastercard by 5.8% during the 2nd quarter. Amundi now owns 3,626,416 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $1,862,527,000 after purchasing an additional 199,424 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership lifted its holdings in Mastercard by 17.8% during the 1st quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 3,666,018 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $1,831,763,000 after purchasing an additional 554,366 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Mastercard Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:MA opened at $610.57 on Thursday. Mastercard Incorporated has a 12-month low of $464.52 and a 12-month high of $633.29. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $584.26 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $535.55. The firm has a market cap of $534.86 billion, a PE ratio of 33.58, a PEG ratio of 1.78 and a beta of 0.76. The company has a quick ratio of 1.06, a current ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.96.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The credit services provider reported $5.04 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.77 by $0.27. The company had revenue of $9.28 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.08 billion. Mastercard had a net margin of 46.34% and a return on equity of 239.99%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 14.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $4.15 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that Mastercard Incorporated will post 19.91 earnings per share for the current year.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 9th. Investors of record on Friday, October 9th will be given a dividend of $0.87 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 9th. This represents a $3.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.6%. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio is currently 19.14%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Mastercard

In other Mastercard news, Director Julius Genachowski sold 370 shares of Mastercard stock in a transaction on Monday, October 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $590.21, for a total value of $218,377.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 8,237 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,861,559.77. The trade was a 4.30% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CFO Ling Hai sold 4,317 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, October 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $620.00, for a total value of $2,676,540.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 35,750 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $22,165,000. The trade was a 10.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold a total of 72,676 shares of company stock valued at $41,966,586 over the last ninety days. 0.09% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have commented on MA. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on Mastercard from $665.00 to $685.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, July 31st. Evercore increased their price objective on Mastercard from $550.00 to $620.00 in a research report on Friday, July 31st. KeyCorp lifted their target price on Mastercard from $670.00 to $680.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, July 31st. Barclays lifted their target price on Mastercard from $640.00 to $660.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, July 31st. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $665.00 target price on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Thursday, October 15th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty have assigned a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $683.94.

Mastercard News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Mastercard this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Favorable earnings setup: JPMorgan analysts see potential upside from durable consumer spending, accelerating international transactions and demand for cybersecurity services, particularly after Visa’s solid results. Analyst Signals Favorable Earnings Setup for Mastercard After Visa’s Results
• Positive Sentiment: Expectations for another beat: Analysts and market coverage point to expanding cross-border activity and growth in value-added services as potential drivers of revenue and earnings above consensus, although higher expenses remain a consideration. Mastercard Looks Poised for a Q3 Earnings Beat
• Positive Sentiment: Expansion of payment capabilities: Mastercard is extending its reach through Google Pay in Nigeria, embedded B2B payments with Tech Mahindra, and Mastercard Max, a platform designed to help Asia-Pacific issuers promote card benefits. These initiatives could support longer-term transaction and services growth. Mastercard and Interswitch Bring Google Pay to Nigeria
• Neutral Sentiment: Stablecoin opportunity remains developing: Mastercard’s Global Money Platform and stablecoin-related initiatives broaden its addressable market, but the company acknowledges that conversions between fiat currencies and stablecoins can limit the speed and benefits of these payments. The Stablecoin Sandwich
• Neutral Sentiment: Valuation raises the bar: Mastercard’s recent rally and record-level trading mean the upcoming report must demonstrate sustained double-digit growth to justify the stock’s premium valuation. Management is also scheduled to participate in two November investor conferences. What Mastercard’s Quarter Has to Prove
• Negative Sentiment: Legal overhang: Mastercard and Visa face potential UK class actions seeking approximately £5 billion over alleged excessive card-payment fees. While the financial impact and outcome remain uncertain, the litigation could pressure future interchange economics. Visa and Mastercard Face UK Lawsuit Over Card Fees

About Mastercard

Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE: MA) is a global payments technology company that operates a network connecting consumers, financial institutions, merchants, governments and businesses. The company facilitates electronic payments and provides technology that supports transactions conducted through credit, debit, prepaid and commercial payment products.

In addition to operating its payments network, Mastercard offers services in areas such as payment security, fraud prevention, authentication, cybersecurity, data and analytics, loyalty programs, digital identity and open banking.