Candriam S.C.A. Buys 19,480 Shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Candriam S.C.A. boosted its stake in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 4.9% during the second quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 413,193 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 19,480 shares during the quarter. Mastercard comprises about 1.1% of Candriam S.C.A.’s holdings, making the stock its 14th biggest position. Candriam S.C.A.’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $182,276,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its position in Mastercard by 2.1% during the fourth quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 6,885 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $2,937,000 after acquiring an additional 141 shares during the last quarter. Gilbert & Cook Inc. increased its position in shares of Mastercard by 8.3% during the 4th quarter. Gilbert & Cook Inc. now owns 3,134 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $1,337,000 after purchasing an additional 241 shares during the last quarter. Aveo Capital Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Mastercard by 8.8% in the 4th quarter. Aveo Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,427 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $609,000 after purchasing an additional 116 shares during the period. Gryphon Financial Partners LLC increased its holdings in Mastercard by 7.3% during the fourth quarter. Gryphon Financial Partners LLC now owns 8,431 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $3,565,000 after buying an additional 571 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Lebenthal Global Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the 4th quarter valued at $422,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on MA. Susquehanna lifted their price objective on Mastercard from $535.00 to $540.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. William Blair upgraded shares of Mastercard to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Bank of America downgraded shares of Mastercard from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their price objective for the company from $505.00 to $480.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $520.00 target price on shares of Mastercard in a report on Wednesday, August 14th. Finally, Compass Point assumed coverage on Mastercard in a report on Wednesday. They set a “neutral” rating and a $525.00 price target on the stock. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-one have issued a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $510.88.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Mastercard news, major shareholder Foundation Mastercard sold 116,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $443.63, for a total transaction of $51,461,080.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 92,998,308 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $41,256,839,378.04. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, major shareholder Foundation Mastercard sold 116,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, June 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $443.63, for a total transaction of $51,461,080.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 92,998,308 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $41,256,839,378.04. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CFO J. Mehra Sachin sold 13,439 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $455.00, for a total value of $6,114,745.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 27,304 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,423,320. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 1,167,931 shares of company stock worth $531,284,982 in the last ninety days. 0.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Mastercard Trading Down 0.2 %

NYSE MA opened at $476.28 on Friday. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $456.26 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $459.59. Mastercard Incorporated has a one year low of $359.77 and a one year high of $490.00. The company has a market capitalization of $442.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 1.10. 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 Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 9th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, July 9th were given a $0.66 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, July 9th. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.55%. Mastercard’s payout ratio is 20.99%.

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.