Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) Stock Holdings Lifted by Allstate Corp

Allstate Corp lifted its position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 3,338.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 24,448 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 23,737 shares during the quarter. Mastercard makes up about 0.4% of Allstate Corp’s holdings, making the stock its 29th biggest holding. Allstate Corp’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $12,874,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the 4th quarter worth about $6,022,224,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in Mastercard in the 4th quarter worth approximately $837,017,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC boosted its position in Mastercard by 79,739.7% during the fourth quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,555,277 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $818,962,000 after purchasing an additional 1,553,329 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. grew its holdings in Mastercard by 12.9% during the fourth 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 purchasing an additional 581,697 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Amundi raised its position in shares of Mastercard by 13.1% in the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 4,899,438 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $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.

Insider Activity at Mastercard

In other Mastercard news, insider Edward Grunde Mclaughlin sold 7,132 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $534.68, for a total value of $3,813,337.76. Following the transaction, 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 sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Michael Miebach sold 15,775 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $550.16, for a total value of $8,678,774.00. Following the sale, 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 position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently issued reports on MA. Monness Crespi & Hardt upgraded shares of Mastercard from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $640.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Mastercard from $590.00 to $610.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Oppenheimer dropped their price target on Mastercard from $591.00 to $588.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on Mastercard from $572.00 to $650.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, William Blair reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Four equities research 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 stock. According to MarketBeat, Mastercard currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $606.11.

Mastercard Stock Down 3.0 %

NYSE MA opened at $540.57 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 1.03. The firm has a market cap of $492.84 billion, a PE ratio of 38.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.10. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $550.58 and its 200 day simple moving average is $526.65. Mastercard Incorporated has a one year low of $428.86 and a one year high of $582.23.

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

Mastercard announced that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Tuesday, December 17th that allows the company to buyback $12.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the credit services provider to purchase up to 2.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

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 paid a dividend of $0.76 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 9th. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.56%. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 21.89%.

Mastercard Company 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.