Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) Shares Sold by Excalibur Management Corp

Excalibur Management Corp lessened its position in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 3.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,757 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 96 shares during the period. Excalibur Management Corp’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $1,452,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of MA. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in Mastercard by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 77,179,138 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $40,640,219,000 after buying an additional 377,302 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its position in shares of Mastercard by 0.7% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 35,288,912 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $17,425,665,000 after acquiring an additional 257,312 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC lifted its stake in Mastercard by 3.4% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 21,355,081 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $10,545,139,000 after purchasing an additional 700,769 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Mastercard by 2.5% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 18,375,053 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $9,043,972,000 after purchasing an additional 453,773 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in Mastercard by 4.2% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 7,501,814 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $3,800,836,000 after purchasing an additional 304,293 shares during the last quarter. 97.28% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Edward Grunde Mclaughlin sold 7,132 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $534.68, for a total value of $3,813,337.76. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 34,524 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $18,459,292.32. The trade was a 17.12 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on MA. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $590.00 to $610.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on Mastercard from $618.00 to $665.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Seaport Res Ptn downgraded Mastercard from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on Mastercard from $584.00 to $650.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on shares of Mastercard from $572.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $606.11.

Mastercard Stock Up 0.2 %

MA opened at $544.74 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 1.03. The company has a market cap of $496.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.22, a PEG ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.10. Mastercard Incorporated has a one year low of $428.86 and a one year high of $582.23. The business’s fifty day moving average is $549.05 and its two-hundred day moving average is $525.90.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The credit services provider reported $3.82 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.71 by $0.11. Mastercard had a net margin of 45.71% and a return on equity of 188.47%. Analysts anticipate that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, December 17th that permits the company to buyback $12.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the credit services provider to reacquire up to 2.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 9th will be paid a dividend of $0.76 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 9th. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.56%. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 21.89%.

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.