Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) Shares Acquired by Vicus Capital

Vicus Capital boosted its stake in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 40.1% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,788 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 512 shares during the period. Vicus Capital’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $861,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in Mastercard by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 75,253,734 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $32,096,470,000 after buying an additional 742,076 shares during the last quarter. Capital International Investors boosted its holdings in Mastercard by 3.3% in 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 last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors grew its stake in 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 valued at $5,803,956,000 after purchasing an additional 605,909 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Mastercard during the 4th quarter worth approximately $4,595,559,000. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its position in shares of Mastercard by 5.9% in the 3rd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 5,510,259 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $2,181,964,000 after purchasing an additional 306,663 shares in the last quarter. 97.28% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently commented on MA. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on Mastercard from $520.00 to $510.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 2nd. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on Mastercard from $536.00 to $524.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 2nd. Mizuho reduced their price objective on Mastercard from $480.00 to $478.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 2nd. TD Cowen initiated coverage on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. They set a “buy” rating and a $545.00 target price for the company. Finally, Barclays dropped their target price on shares of Mastercard from $549.00 to $530.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, May 6th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Mastercard presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $496.91.

Insider Buying and Selling at Mastercard

In other Mastercard news, major shareholder Foundation Mastercard sold 111,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $457.15, for a total value of $50,743,650.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 97,432,308 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $44,541,179,602.20. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Mastercard news, major shareholder Foundation Mastercard sold 111,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $457.15, for a total value of $50,743,650.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 97,432,308 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $44,541,179,602.20. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Sandra A. Arkell sold 300 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $454.00, for a total transaction of $136,200.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 3,463 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,572,202. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 3,163,228 shares of company stock valued at $1,428,540,870 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Mastercard Trading Down 0.4 %

Shares of Mastercard stock traded down $1.59 during trading on Friday, hitting $441.16. The stock had a trading volume of 4,105,179 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,467,253. Mastercard Incorporated has a 1 year low of $359.77 and a 1 year high of $490.00. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $451.50 and a 200 day simple moving average of $453.11. The company has a quick ratio of 1.09, a current ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.86. The company has a market capitalization of $410.11 billion, a PE ratio of 35.07, a P/E/G ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 1.09.

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

Mastercard Announces Dividend

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

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.