Roman Butler Fullerton & Co. Raises Holdings in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Roman Butler Fullerton & Co. lifted its stake in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 3.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 17,316 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 592 shares during the quarter. Mastercard accounts for approximately 3.0% of Roman Butler Fullerton & Co.’s holdings, making the stock its 5th biggest position. Roman Butler Fullerton & Co.’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $7,593,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Bornite Capital Management LP bought a new stake in Mastercard in the 1st quarter worth about $21,442,000. United Bank grew its stake in shares of Mastercard by 34.5% in the first quarter. United Bank now owns 6,007 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $2,147,000 after acquiring an additional 1,541 shares during the period. Mackenzie Financial Corp raised its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 30.1% during the first quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 272,358 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $97,335,000 after purchasing an additional 63,040 shares during the last quarter. First Western Trust Bank bought a new position in Mastercard during the first quarter valued at approximately $1,168,000. Finally, Bridgewater Associates LP purchased a new stake in Mastercard in the first quarter worth approximately $12,926,000. Institutional investors own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Michael Miebach sold 7,851 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $475.92, for a total transaction of $3,736,447.92. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 47,640 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $22,672,828.80. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In related news, CEO Michael Miebach sold 7,851 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $475.92, for a total value of $3,736,447.92. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 47,640 shares in the company, valued at $22,672,828.80. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CMO Venkata R. Madabhushi sold 16,037 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction 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 sale, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 12,255 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,832,644.70. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 41,728 shares of company stock worth $19,479,753 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

Mastercard Price Performance

MA traded down $1.27 on Thursday, hitting $458.89. 251,986 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,382,021. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $471.83 and its 200-day simple moving average is $433.21. The company has a current ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.06. Mastercard Incorporated has a one year low of $357.85 and a one year high of $490.00. The firm has a market cap of $428.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.89, a P/E/G ratio of 1.74 and a beta of 1.08.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last released 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. The firm had revenue of $6.55 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.46 billion. Mastercard had a net margin of 44.60% and a return on equity of 191.22%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.65 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts anticipate 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. Stockholders 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 dividend yield of 0.58%. Mastercard’s payout ratio is 22.32%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on MA shares. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on shares of Mastercard from $433.00 to $482.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 11th. Susquehanna reissued a “positive” rating and issued a $535.00 target price on shares of Mastercard in a report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Oppenheimer reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $510.00 target price on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Thursday, February 1st. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on shares of Mastercard from $432.00 to $499.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 1st. Finally, William Blair reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Wednesday, January 31st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $490.23.

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.