Kennedy Investment Group Raises Holdings in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Kennedy Investment Group increased its holdings in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 1.0% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 10,696 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after buying an additional 111 shares during the period. Mastercard makes up 2.4% of Kennedy Investment Group’s portfolio, making the stock its 10th largest position. Kennedy Investment Group’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $5,282,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of MA. James Hambro & Partners LLP raised its position in shares of Mastercard by 0.6% in the third quarter. James Hambro & Partners LLP now owns 5,043 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $2,490,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares during the period. Toth Financial Advisory Corp grew its stake in Mastercard by 1.9% in the 3rd quarter. Toth Financial Advisory Corp now owns 27,890 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $13,772,000 after buying an additional 530 shares during the last quarter. Castleview Partners LLC raised its holdings in Mastercard by 1.5% in the 3rd quarter. Castleview Partners LLC now owns 2,843 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $1,404,000 after acquiring an additional 42 shares during the period. Prio Wealth Limited Partnership lifted its position in Mastercard by 22.8% during the third quarter. Prio Wealth Limited Partnership now owns 2,286 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $1,129,000 after acquiring an additional 425 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Trilogy Capital Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 13.9% during the third quarter. Trilogy Capital Inc. now owns 893 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $441,000 after acquiring an additional 109 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Mastercard

In other news, CFO J. Mehra Sachin sold 13,439 shares of the 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 in the company, valued at $12,423,320. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, CMO Venkata R. Madabhushi sold 4,685 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $493.10, for a total transaction of $2,310,173.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer now owns 17,118 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,440,885.80. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CFO J. Mehra Sachin sold 13,439 shares of the business’s 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 transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 27,304 shares in the company, valued at $12,423,320. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 340,809 shares of company stock worth $159,610,703. Company insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on MA shares. Compass Point initiated coverage on Mastercard in a research note on Wednesday, September 4th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $525.00 target price on the stock. Citigroup lifted their target price on Mastercard from $528.00 to $538.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Mastercard from $570.00 to $593.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday. TD Cowen lifted their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $532.00 to $533.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Finally, Oppenheimer assumed coverage on shares of Mastercard in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $591.00 price objective for the company. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have issued a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $525.68.

Mastercard Price Performance

MA traded down $0.50 on Monday, reaching $515.84. The stock had a trading volume of 907,925 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,435,328. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $486.90 and a 200-day moving average of $464.01. The company has a market capitalization of $479.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 1.10. Mastercard Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $359.77 and a fifty-two week high of $518.82. The company has a current ratio of 1.14, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.95.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The credit services provider reported $3.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.51 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $6.96 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.85 billion. Mastercard had a net margin of 46.45% and a return on equity of 179.78%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.3 EPS for the current year.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 8th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, October 9th will be given a dividend of $0.66 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, October 9th. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.51%. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) 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.