Birinyi Associates Inc. Has $25.51 Million Stake in Mastercard Incorporated $MA

Birinyi Associates Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 0.9% in the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 45,402 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 420 shares during the period. Mastercard accounts for approximately 7.5% of Birinyi Associates Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 4th largest position. Birinyi Associates Inc.’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $25,513,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Family Legacy Financial Solutions LLC bought a new position in Mastercard during the second quarter worth $26,000. Flaharty Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the 1st quarter worth about $27,000. Keystone Global Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the 1st quarter worth about $31,000. Hughes Financial Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the 1st quarter worth about $34,000. Finally, 1 North Wealth Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the 1st quarter worth about $44,000. Institutional investors own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on MA shares. TD Cowen restated a “buy” rating and set a $645.00 price objective on shares of Mastercard in a report on Monday, August 11th. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Mastercard from $639.00 to $661.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft initiated coverage on shares of Mastercard in a report on Thursday, July 17th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $650.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $650.00 to $656.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, August 1st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-five have assigned a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Mastercard presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $634.04.

Mastercard Stock Performance

Shares of Mastercard stock opened at $579.24 on Wednesday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $580.78 and a 200-day moving average of $562.45. Mastercard Incorporated has a 1-year low of $465.59 and a 1-year high of $601.77. The company has a current ratio of 1.16, a quick ratio of 1.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.41. The company has a market cap of $523.64 billion, a PE ratio of 39.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 0.97.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The credit services provider reported $4.15 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.05 by $0.10. Mastercard had a return on equity of 200.01% and a net margin of 44.93%.The firm had revenue of $8.13 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.95 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $3.50 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 16.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 7th. Investors of record on Thursday, October 9th will be given a dividend of $0.76 per share. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 9th. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio is currently 20.50%.

Insider Activity at Mastercard

In other news, CFO J. Mehra Sachin sold 17,816 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $586.89, for a total value of $10,456,032.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 31,234 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $18,330,922.26. This represents a 36.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

About Mastercard

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.