Echo45 Advisors LLC Purchases 209 Shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Echo45 Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 29.9% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 908 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 209 shares during the period. Mastercard comprises about 0.3% of Echo45 Advisors LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 26th biggest position. Echo45 Advisors LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $437,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Mastercard during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $4,595,559,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in Mastercard by 43,445.1% in the fourth quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 2,936,684 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $1,252,525,000 after purchasing an additional 2,929,940 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in Mastercard by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 75,253,734 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $32,096,470,000 after purchasing an additional 742,076 shares in the last quarter. Capital International Investors raised its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 3.3% during the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 21,041,685 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $8,974,478,000 after purchasing an additional 676,452 shares during the period. Finally, Capital Research Global Investors boosted its position in shares of Mastercard by 4.7% during the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 13,608,023 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $5,803,956,000 after purchasing an additional 605,909 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have commented on the stock. Barclays decreased their price target on shares of Mastercard from $549.00 to $530.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, May 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of Mastercard from $520.00 to $510.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 2nd. Piper Sandler initiated coverage on Mastercard in a research note on Monday, May 13th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $531.00 price target for the company. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on Mastercard from $536.00 to $524.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 2nd. Finally, Robert W. Baird increased their price target on Mastercard from $525.00 to $545.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 18th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Mastercard presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $496.91.

Mastercard Price Performance

Shares of MA stock traded down $4.34 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $436.82. 1,985,645 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,456,974. The company has a current ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.86. The company has a market capitalization of $406.07 billion, a PE ratio of 35.07, a PEG ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.09. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $451.50 and its 200-day simple moving average is $453.31. Mastercard Incorporated has a 12-month low of $359.77 and a 12-month high of $490.00.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The credit services provider reported $3.31 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.22 by $0.09. Mastercard had a return on equity of 183.70% and a net margin of 46.09%. The business had revenue of $6.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.34 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.80 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 10.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.26 earnings per share for the current year.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 9th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, July 9th will be given a dividend of $0.66 per share. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.60%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, July 9th. Mastercard’s payout ratio is currently 20.99%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Sandra A. Arkell sold 300 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $447.23, for a total value of $134,169.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 4,063 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,817,095.49. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other Mastercard news, insider Sandra A. Arkell sold 300 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $447.23, for a total value of $134,169.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 4,063 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,817,095.49. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder Foundation Mastercard sold 110,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $441.43, for a total transaction of $48,557,300.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 94,014,308 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $41,500,735,980.44. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 3,163,228 shares of company stock worth $1,428,540,870. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.