Principal Securities Inc. Has $13.68 Million Stake in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Principal Securities Inc. increased its position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 4.5% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 27,701 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,185 shares during the period. Principal Securities Inc.’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $13,679,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MA. Goldstein Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 1.3% during the third quarter. Goldstein Advisors LLC now owns 1,516 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $749,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the period. McLean Asset Management Corp increased its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 1.3% during the third quarter. McLean Asset Management Corp now owns 1,677 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $834,000 after purchasing an additional 21 shares during the period. Oldfather Financial Services LLC increased its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 2.6% during the third quarter. Oldfather Financial Services LLC now owns 827 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $408,000 after purchasing an additional 21 shares during the period. Quilter Plc increased its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 2.8% during the second quarter. Quilter Plc now owns 801 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $353,000 after purchasing an additional 22 shares during the period. Finally, Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 0.5% during the third quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,351 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $2,148,000 after purchasing an additional 22 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Mastercard Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MA opened at $499.08 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $461.07 billion, a PE ratio of 38.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 1.10. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $494.93 and its 200-day moving average is $466.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.95, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a current ratio of 1.14. Mastercard Incorporated has a 52 week low of $373.11 and a 52 week high of $527.90.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The credit services provider reported $3.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.73 by $0.16. The business had revenue of $7.37 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.27 billion. Mastercard had a net margin of 46.45% and a return on equity of 179.78%. Mastercard’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $3.39 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.33 earnings per share for the current year.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 8th. Investors of record on Wednesday, October 9th will be issued a $0.66 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, October 9th. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.53%. Mastercard’s payout ratio is 20.18%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently commented on MA shares. Compass Point started coverage on shares of Mastercard in a report on Wednesday, September 4th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $525.00 target price on the stock. BMO Capital Markets reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $520.00 price objective on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Wednesday, August 14th. BNP Paribas cut shares of Mastercard from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $470.00 price objective on the stock. in a research note on Tuesday, September 3rd. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $536.00 to $576.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $528.00 to $538.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have assigned a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $527.00.

Insider Activity at Mastercard

In related news, CMO Venkata R. Madabhushi sold 4,685 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, September 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $493.10, for a total value of $2,310,173.50. Following the transaction, the chief marketing officer now owns 17,118 shares in the company, valued at $8,440,885.80. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other Mastercard news, CMO Venkata R. Madabhushi sold 4,685 shares of Mastercard stock in a transaction on Friday, September 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $493.10, for a total value of $2,310,173.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 17,118 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,440,885.80. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO J. Mehra Sachin sold 13,439 shares of Mastercard stock in a transaction on Monday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $455.00, for a total transaction of $6,114,745.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 27,304 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,423,320. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 340,809 shares of company stock worth $159,610,703 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.10% 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.