Mastercard Incorporated $MA Shares Sold by WestEnd Advisors LLC

WestEnd Advisors LLC lessened its holdings in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 5.1% in the second quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 78,118 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 4,196 shares during the period. Mastercard accounts for approximately 1.1% of WestEnd Advisors LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 24th biggest holding. WestEnd Advisors LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $43,900,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Family Legacy Financial Solutions LLC acquired a new position in Mastercard in the second quarter worth $26,000. Flaharty Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Mastercard during the first quarter valued at $27,000. Keystone Global Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Mastercard during the first quarter valued at $31,000. Hughes Financial Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of Mastercard during the first quarter valued at $34,000. Finally, 1 North Wealth Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of Mastercard during the first quarter valued at $44,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Mastercard Price Performance

Shares of Mastercard stock opened at $579.24 on Wednesday. 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’s 50-day moving average price is $580.78 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $562.45. Mastercard Incorporated has a 52 week low of $465.59 and a 52 week high of $601.77. The stock 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 posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 31st. The credit services provider reported $4.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.05 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $8.13 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.95 billion. Mastercard had a return on equity of 200.01% and a net margin of 44.93%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 16.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $3.50 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Transactions at Mastercard

In other Mastercard news, CFO J. Mehra Sachin sold 17,263 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $591.00, for a total transaction of $10,202,433.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 31,234 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,459,294. The trade was a 35.60% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on MA shares. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Mastercard from $625.00 to $650.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, August 1st. Seaport Res Ptn raised shares of Mastercard from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, July 14th. Truist Financial reduced their price target on shares of Mastercard from $640.00 to $612.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 17th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on shares of Mastercard from $640.00 to $660.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday. Finally, TD Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $645.00 price objective on shares of Mastercard in a report on Monday, August 11th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-five have given a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $634.04.

Mastercard 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.