Retirement Guys Formula LLC Grows Stock Holdings in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Retirement Guys Formula LLC grew its position in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 1.3% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 2,753 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 35 shares during the period. Retirement Guys Formula LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $1,326,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Mastercard by 1.0% during 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 purchasing an additional 742,076 shares in the last quarter. Capital International Investors grew its position in shares of Mastercard by 3.3% during the 4th 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 in the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors grew 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 valued at $5,803,956,000 after purchasing an additional 605,909 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Mastercard during the 4th quarter valued at $4,595,559,000. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada grew its position in shares of Mastercard by 1.1% during the 3rd quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 5,314,881 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $2,104,214,000 after purchasing an additional 56,642 shares in the last quarter. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently issued reports on MA shares. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Mastercard from $490.00 to $530.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of Mastercard from $520.00 to $510.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 2nd. Piper Sandler started coverage on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Monday, May 13th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $531.00 target price for the company. TD Cowen started coverage on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $545.00 target price for the company. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their target price on shares of Mastercard from $536.00 to $524.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 2nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $496.91.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Sandra A. Arkell sold 300 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $447.23, for a total transaction of $134,169.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 4,063 shares in the company, valued at $1,817,095.49. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In related news, insider Sandra A. Arkell sold 300 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $447.23, for a total transaction of $134,169.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 4,063 shares in the company, valued at $1,817,095.49. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, major shareholder Foundation Mastercard sold 138,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $453.19, for a total transaction of $62,540,220.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 92,152,308 shares in the company, valued at approximately $41,762,504,462.52. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 3,163,228 shares of company stock worth $1,428,540,870 over the last 90 days. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Mastercard Trading Up 0.8 %

MA stock traded up $3.53 during trading on Thursday, reaching $448.18. The company had a trading volume of 3,192,350 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,526,183. Mastercard Incorporated has a 52 week low of $359.77 and a 52 week high of $490.00. The company has a market cap of $416.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.63, a PEG ratio of 1.74 and a beta of 1.09. The business has a 50 day moving average of $450.47 and a 200 day moving average of $453.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.86, a current ratio of 1.09 and a quick ratio of 1.09.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The credit services provider reported $3.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.22 by $0.09. Mastercard had a net margin of 46.09% and a return on equity of 183.70%. The company had revenue of $6.35 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.34 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.80 earnings per share. Mastercard’s revenue was up 10.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.26 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 9th. Investors of record on Tuesday, July 9th will be paid a $0.66 dividend. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.59%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, July 9th. Mastercard’s payout ratio is currently 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.