Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) Stake Lessened by O ROURKE & COMPANY Inc

O ROURKE & COMPANY Inc decreased its position in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 14.5% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 425 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 72 shares during the quarter. O ROURKE & COMPANY Inc’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $224,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MA. NewSquare Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Mastercard in the 4th quarter worth $26,000. Marshall Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Mastercard during the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Mastercard in the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. Truvestments Capital LLC lifted its holdings in Mastercard by 62.5% in the 4th quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC now owns 65 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CoreFirst Bank & Trust bought a new position in shares of Mastercard during the 4th quarter valued at about $37,000. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Mastercard news, insider Edward Grunde Mclaughlin sold 7,132 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, the insider now 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 legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Michael Miebach sold 15,775 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 26th. The shares were 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 in the company, valued at approximately $46,692,629.36. This represents a 15.67 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MA has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on Mastercard from $654.00 to $644.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Mastercard from $595.00 to $650.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Tigress Financial reaffirmed a “strong-buy” rating on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Monday, March 10th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $618.00 to $665.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted 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. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Mastercard currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $607.96.

Mastercard Price Performance

NYSE MA opened at $509.66 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $464.66 billion, a PE ratio of 36.69, a P/E/G ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.06. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $542.81 and a 200 day simple moving average of $528.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 1.03. Mastercard Incorporated has a twelve month low of $428.86 and a twelve month high of $582.23.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The credit services provider reported $3.82 EPS for the quarter, topping 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%. Research analysts anticipate that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 EPS for the current year.

Mastercard announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, December 17th that allows the company to repurchase $12.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the credit services provider to reacquire up to 2.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often a sign 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. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 9th will be issued a $0.76 dividend. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.60%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 9th. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 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.