Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) Holdings Decreased by Dearborn Partners LLC

Dearborn Partners LLC lessened its stake in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 4.2% in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 85,474 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 3,732 shares during the period. Mastercard accounts for 1.7% of Dearborn Partners LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 15th biggest holding. Dearborn Partners LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $42,207,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Highline Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Mastercard in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL bought a new position in shares of Mastercard in the second quarter valued at $34,000. First Personal Financial Services acquired a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the 3rd quarter valued at $39,000. Fairway Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of Mastercard in the 2nd quarter worth $35,000. Finally, Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 74.0% in the 3rd quarter. Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 87 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $43,000 after acquiring an additional 37 shares during the last quarter. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on MA shares. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on shares of Mastercard from $545.00 to $575.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of Mastercard from $566.00 to $572.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their target price on Mastercard from $510.00 to $580.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Oppenheimer assumed coverage on Mastercard in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. They set an “outperform” rating and a $591.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Barclays lifted their price objective on Mastercard from $536.00 to $576.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-one have given a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $547.80.

Mastercard Trading Down 0.3 %

Shares of Mastercard stock opened at $520.40 on Friday. Mastercard Incorporated has a 12-month low of $394.76 and a 12-month high of $534.03. The stock has a market capitalization of $477.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.28 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $502.32 and a 200 day simple moving average of $470.24. The company has a quick ratio of 1.29, a current ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.36.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The credit services provider reported $3.89 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.73 by $0.16. Mastercard had a return on equity of 178.27% and a net margin of 45.26%. The company had revenue of $7.37 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.27 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $3.39 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 12.8% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 8th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, October 9th were given a $0.66 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, October 9th. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.51%. Mastercard’s payout ratio is 19.97%.

Insider Activity

In related news, major shareholder Foundation Mastercard sold 109,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $467.45, for a total value of $50,952,050.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 91,924,308 shares in the company, valued at $42,970,017,774.60. This trade represents a 0.12 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CMO Venkata R. Madabhushi sold 4,685 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, September 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $489.86, for a total value of $2,294,994.10. Following the sale, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 15,031 shares in the company, valued at $7,363,085.66. The trade was a 23.76 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 208,370 shares of company stock valued at $97,749,218. Company insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

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.