Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) Shares Sold by MJP Associates Inc. ADV

MJP Associates Inc. ADV trimmed its holdings in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 46.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 837 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 723 shares during the period. MJP Associates Inc. ADV’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $357,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL acquired a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the 1st quarter worth about $25,000. Hibernia Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the 3rd quarter worth about $27,000. Bollard Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the 2nd quarter worth about $29,000. Barometer Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the 3rd quarter worth about $36,000. Finally, Mascoma Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the 3rd quarter worth about $38,000. 97.28% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Mastercard news, major shareholder Foundation Mastercard sold 200 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $487.25, for a total transaction of $97,450.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 97,543,308 shares in the company, valued at $47,527,976,823. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other Mastercard news, major shareholder Foundation Mastercard sold 200 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $487.25, for a total transaction of $97,450.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 97,543,308 shares in the company, valued at $47,527,976,823. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CMO Venkata R. Madabhushi sold 16,037 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $475.94, for a total value of $7,632,649.78. Following the transaction, the chief marketing officer now owns 12,255 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,832,644.70. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 50,628 shares of company stock worth $23,309,067. Insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

Mastercard Stock Up 0.2 %

Shares of MA traded up $1.15 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $477.95. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 2,249,400 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,446,885. The company has a 50 day moving average of $463.16 and a two-hundred day moving average of $426.09. Mastercard Incorporated has a 1-year low of $352.80 and a 1-year high of $490.00. The firm has a market cap of $445.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.37, a P/E/G ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a quick ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.06.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 31st. The credit services provider reported $3.18 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.08 by $0.10. Mastercard had a return on equity of 191.22% and a net margin of 44.60%. The firm had revenue of $6.55 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.46 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.65 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard announced that its board has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, December 5th that allows the company to repurchase $11.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the credit services provider to repurchase up to 2.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 9th. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 9th will be issued a $0.66 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 8th. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.55%. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio is currently 22.32%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently commented on MA. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on shares of Mastercard from $480.00 to $490.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 1st. Raymond James lifted their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $452.00 to $504.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 1st. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on shares of Mastercard from $433.00 to $482.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 11th. William Blair restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Wednesday, January 31st. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $432.00 to $499.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 1st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-one have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Mastercard presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $479.62.

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.