Rothschild & Co Wealth Management UK Ltd Raises Holdings in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Rothschild & Co Wealth Management UK Ltd increased its position in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 0.1% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 1,463,987 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after buying an additional 1,243 shares during the period. Mastercard comprises 10.2% of Rothschild & Co Wealth Management UK Ltd’s portfolio, making the stock its 4th biggest holding. Rothschild & Co Wealth Management UK Ltd’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $624,405,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. State Street Corp increased its holdings in Mastercard by 3.9% during the first quarter. State Street Corp now owns 34,759,814 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $12,632,032,000 after buying an additional 1,303,477 shares during the last quarter. Morgan Stanley grew its position in shares of Mastercard by 17.7% in the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 15,843,692 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $5,509,328,000 after acquiring an additional 2,385,640 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Mastercard in the 4th quarter valued at about $3,308,223,000. Northern Trust Corp raised its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 2.9% in the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 9,075,358 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $3,593,025,000 after purchasing an additional 251,516 shares during the period. Finally, Nuveen Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in Mastercard by 3.9% in the 2nd quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC now owns 8,420,213 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $3,311,670,000 after purchasing an additional 318,077 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have issued reports on MA shares. KeyCorp upped their price objective on Mastercard from $475.00 to $490.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $504.00 to $520.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday. Mizuho reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $480.00 price objective on shares of Mastercard in a report on Wednesday, March 27th. Raymond James raised their target price on shares of Mastercard from $452.00 to $504.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 1st. Finally, Monness Crespi & Hardt started coverage on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Wednesday, December 20th. They issued a “neutral” rating on the stock. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $485.91.

Mastercard Price Performance

Shares of MA stock traded up $0.03 on Wednesday, hitting $459.82. 1,787,264 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,209,005. The company has a 50 day moving average of $471.86 and a 200 day moving average of $433.03. The stock has a market cap of $428.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.74 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.06, a current ratio of 1.17 and a quick ratio of 1.17. Mastercard Incorporated has a 12 month low of $357.85 and a 12 month high of $490.00.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 31st. The credit services provider reported $3.18 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.08 by $0.10. Mastercard had a return on equity of 191.22% and a net margin of 44.60%. The firm had revenue of $6.55 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.46 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.65 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.36 EPS for the current year.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 9th. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 9th will be given a dividend of $0.66 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 8th. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.57%. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio is currently 22.32%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Ajay Bhalla sold 4,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $435.00, for a total transaction of $1,740,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 6,235 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,712,225. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, insider Ajay Bhalla sold 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, January 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $435.00, for a total transaction of $1,740,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 6,235 shares in the company, valued at $2,712,225. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, major shareholder Foundation Mastercard sold 200 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $487.25, for a total transaction of $97,450.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 97,543,308 shares in the company, valued at approximately $47,527,976,823. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 41,728 shares of company stock valued at $19,479,753 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

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.