Gardner Lewis Asset Management L P Sells 141 Shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Gardner Lewis Asset Management L P lowered its position in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 0.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 28,044 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 141 shares during the period. Mastercard accounts for approximately 3.6% of Gardner Lewis Asset Management L P’s portfolio, making the stock its 5th largest position. Gardner Lewis Asset Management L P’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $14,767,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Mastercard by 4.8% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 3,031,915 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $1,497,160,000 after buying an additional 138,842 shares during the last quarter. Algert Global LLC purchased a new position in shares of Mastercard during the third quarter worth about $1,540,000. FORA Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the third quarter worth about $673,000. MayTech Global Investments LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 17.4% in the 3rd quarter. MayTech Global Investments LLC now owns 77,168 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $38,106,000 after purchasing an additional 11,432 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank boosted its position in shares of Mastercard by 18.6% in the 3rd quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 430,699 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $212,679,000 after purchasing an additional 67,663 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Mastercard Stock Up 1.6 %

Mastercard stock opened at $557.64 on Friday. Mastercard Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $428.86 and a fifty-two week high of $582.23. The firm has a market capitalization of $508.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.10. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $550.27 and its two-hundred day moving average is $526.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 1.03.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The credit services provider reported $3.82 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.71 by $0.11. Mastercard had a net margin of 45.71% and a return on equity of 188.47%. Analysts predict 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, May 9th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 9th will be given a dividend of $0.76 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 9th. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.55%. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio is currently 21.89%.

Mastercard announced that its board has approved a stock buyback program on Tuesday, December 17th that permits the company to repurchase $12.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the credit services provider to repurchase up to 2.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are often a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on MA shares. Barclays boosted their price objective on Mastercard from $595.00 to $650.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Mastercard from $585.00 to $625.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $590.00 to $610.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Susquehanna upped their target price on shares of Mastercard from $605.00 to $670.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Oppenheimer lowered their price target on Mastercard from $591.00 to $588.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Mastercard currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $606.11.

Insider Activity at Mastercard

In other Mastercard news, insider Edward Grunde Mclaughlin sold 7,132 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $534.68, for a total value of $3,813,337.76. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 34,524 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,459,292.32. This represents a 17.12 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Michael Miebach sold 15,775 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $550.16, for a total transaction of $8,678,774.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 84,871 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $46,692,629.36. This represents a 15.67 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.