Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) Shares Acquired by Auxano Advisors LLC

Auxano Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 6.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,048 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 65 shares during the quarter. Auxano Advisors LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $447,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MA. Northern Trust Corp boosted its holdings in Mastercard by 2.9% in the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 9,075,358 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $3,593,025,000 after purchasing an additional 251,516 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 6.9% in the 3rd quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 7,966,348 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $3,153,957,000 after buying an additional 515,481 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its position in shares of Mastercard by 5.9% during 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 buying an additional 306,663 shares during the last quarter. Royal Bank of Canada raised its stake in Mastercard by 1.1% during the third quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 5,314,881 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $2,104,214,000 after acquiring an additional 56,642 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Mastercard by 0.4% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,557,530 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $1,804,372,000 after acquiring an additional 16,019 shares during the last quarter. 97.28% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently commented on MA shares. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Mastercard from $490.00 to $530.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. Susquehanna reaffirmed a “positive” rating and issued a $535.00 price objective on shares of Mastercard in a report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Raymond James lifted their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $452.00 to $504.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 1st. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on shares of Mastercard from $433.00 to $482.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 11th. Finally, Oppenheimer reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $510.00 price target on shares of Mastercard in a report on Thursday, February 1st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $490.23.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, major shareholder Foundation Mastercard sold 200 shares of Mastercard stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $487.25, for a total transaction of $97,450.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 97,543,308 shares in the company, valued at $47,527,976,823. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other news, major shareholder Foundation Mastercard sold 200 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $487.25, for a total value of $97,450.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 97,543,308 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $47,527,976,823. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CMO Venkata R. Madabhushi sold 16,037 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $475.94, for a total transaction of $7,632,649.78. Following the transaction, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 12,255 shares in the company, valued at $5,832,644.70. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 480,630 shares of company stock valued at $221,479,470. Company insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

Mastercard Price Performance

Mastercard stock traded down $5.90 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $451.20. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 2,688,162 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,410,052. Mastercard Incorporated has a twelve month low of $357.85 and a twelve month high of $490.00. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $471.13 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $437.01. The stock has a market capitalization of $420.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.37, a P/E/G ratio of 1.76 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a quick ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.06.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 31st. The credit services provider reported $3.18 earnings per share (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 for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.46 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.65 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.35 earnings per share 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 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 is Monday, April 8th. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio is 22.32%.

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.