Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) Shares Sold by Gardner Lewis Asset Management L P

Gardner Lewis Asset Management L P cut its stake in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 0.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 28,044 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 141 shares during the period. Mastercard makes up 3.6% of Gardner Lewis Asset Management L P’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 5th largest position. Gardner Lewis Asset Management L P’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $14,767,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the 4th quarter worth about $6,022,224,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Mastercard in the 4th quarter valued at $837,017,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Mastercard by 79,739.7% in the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,555,277 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $818,962,000 after acquiring an additional 1,553,329 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 12.9% during the 4th quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 5,079,915 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $2,674,932,000 after acquiring an additional 581,697 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Amundi boosted its position in Mastercard by 13.1% during the 4th quarter. Amundi now owns 4,899,438 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $2,532,541,000 after purchasing an additional 565,717 shares during the period. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have commented on the company. KeyCorp raised their price objective on Mastercard from $600.00 to $630.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Raymond James reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $640.00 price objective (up previously from $614.00) on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on shares of Mastercard from $654.00 to $644.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Tigress Financial reaffirmed a “strong-buy” rating on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Monday, March 10th. Finally, Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $584.00 to $650.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $606.11.

Mastercard Stock Up 1.6 %

MA stock opened at $557.64 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $550.27 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $526.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 1.03. Mastercard Incorporated has a 1-year low of $428.86 and a 1-year high of $582.23. The firm has a market cap of $508.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.15, a PEG ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.10.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The credit services provider reported $3.82 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.71 by $0.11. Mastercard had a net margin of 45.71% and a return on equity of 188.47%. Research analysts predict that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 EPS for the current year.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 9th will be given a dividend of $0.76 per share. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.55%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 9th. Mastercard’s payout ratio is 21.89%.

Mastercard announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, December 17th that permits the company to repurchase $12.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the credit services provider to reacquire up to 2.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Michael Miebach sold 15,775 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $550.16, for a total transaction of $8,678,774.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 84,871 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $46,692,629.36. The trade was a 15.67 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Edward Grunde Mclaughlin sold 7,132 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $534.68, for a total transaction of $3,813,337.76. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 34,524 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,459,292.32. This trade represents a 17.12 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 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.