Black Diamond Financial LLC Increases Holdings in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Black Diamond Financial LLC boosted its position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 55.6% during the second quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 937 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 335 shares during the period. Black Diamond Financial LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $413,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Intech Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 15.6% in the 4th quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 24,452 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $10,429,000 after acquiring an additional 3,306 shares during the last quarter. Brevan Howard Capital Management LP boosted its position in Mastercard by 213.2% in the 4th quarter. Brevan Howard Capital Management LP now owns 8,456 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $3,607,000 after purchasing an additional 5,756 shares in the last quarter. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise grew its stake in shares of Mastercard by 6.9% during the 1st quarter. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise now owns 41,250 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $19,865,000 after purchasing an additional 2,676 shares during the period. NEOS Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 42.0% during the 4th quarter. NEOS Investment Management LLC now owns 11,724 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $5,000,000 after purchasing an additional 3,469 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Morningstar Investment Services LLC lifted its stake in shares of Mastercard by 96.8% in the 4th quarter. Morningstar Investment Services LLC now owns 593,789 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $253,144,000 after purchasing an additional 292,064 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Mastercard

In other Mastercard news, major shareholder Foundation Mastercard sold 111,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $451.07, for a total transaction of $50,068,770.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 92,672,308 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $41,801,697,969.56. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other Mastercard news, major shareholder Foundation Mastercard sold 111,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $451.07, for a total transaction of $50,068,770.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 92,672,308 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $41,801,697,969.56. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CFO J. Mehra Sachin sold 13,439 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $455.00, for a total transaction of $6,114,745.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 27,304 shares in the company, valued at $12,423,320. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 720,467 shares of company stock worth $331,875,955. Insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Mastercard Stock Up 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE:MA opened at $493.36 on Monday. Mastercard Incorporated has a 52-week low of $359.77 and a 52-week high of $496.85. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.95. The business has a fifty day moving average of $460.67 and a two-hundred day moving average of $460.18. The stock has a market cap of $458.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.22, a PEG ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 1.10.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 31st. The credit services provider reported $3.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.51 by $0.08. Mastercard had a net margin of 46.45% and a return on equity of 179.78%. The firm had revenue of $6.96 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.85 billion. On average, research analysts expect that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.29 earnings per share for the current year.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 9th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, July 9th were given a dividend of $0.66 per share. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.54%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, July 9th. Mastercard’s payout ratio is presently 20.99%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have weighed in on MA shares. Susquehanna lifted their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $535.00 to $540.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $520.00 price target on shares of Mastercard in a report on Wednesday, August 14th. Evercore ISI dropped their price objective on Mastercard from $540.00 to $525.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, June 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Mastercard from $500.00 to $570.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 20th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on shares of Mastercard from $500.00 to $526.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-one have issued a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Mastercard currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $510.88.

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.