Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) Position Boosted by Xponance Inc.

Xponance Inc. lifted its position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 0.7% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 208,534 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after buying an additional 1,375 shares during the quarter. Mastercard accounts for about 1.1% of Xponance Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 13th biggest holding. Xponance Inc.’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $88,942,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in MA. AIA Group Ltd boosted its position in Mastercard by 6.6% during the fourth quarter. AIA Group Ltd now owns 30,307 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $12,926,000 after purchasing an additional 1,887 shares during the period. Ninety One SA PTY Ltd lifted its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 25.9% during the fourth quarter. Ninety One SA PTY Ltd now owns 43,891 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $18,720,000 after buying an additional 9,016 shares during the last quarter. Oliver Lagore Vanvalin Investment Group raised its stake in shares of Mastercard by 4.1% in the fourth quarter. Oliver Lagore Vanvalin Investment Group now owns 2,392 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $1,020,000 after purchasing an additional 94 shares in the last quarter. Dock Street Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in Mastercard by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Dock Street Asset Management Inc. now owns 59,957 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $25,572,000 after acquiring an additional 983 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Tufton Capital Management raised its stake in Mastercard by 4.5% during the fourth quarter. Tufton Capital Management now owns 604 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $258,000 after acquiring an additional 26 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Ajay Bhalla sold 98 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, January 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $439.52, for a total transaction of $43,072.96. Following the sale, the insider now owns 6,235 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,740,407.20. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, insider Ajay Bhalla sold 98 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, January 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $439.52, for a total transaction of $43,072.96. Following the sale, the insider now owns 6,235 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,740,407.20. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder Foundation Mastercard sold 200 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 owns 97,543,308 shares in the company, valued at approximately $47,527,976,823. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 41,728 shares of company stock worth $19,479,753 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

Mastercard Price Performance

NYSE MA traded down $5.46 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $454.70. The company had a trading volume of 1,995,546 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,397,894. The company has a market capitalization of $424.19 billion, a PE ratio of 38.89, a P/E/G ratio of 1.74 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a current ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.06. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $471.83 and a 200-day moving average price of $433.21. Mastercard Incorporated has a twelve month low of $357.85 and a twelve month high of $490.00.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 31st. The credit services provider reported $3.18 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.08 by $0.10. Mastercard had a return on equity of 191.22% and a net margin of 44.60%. The company had revenue of $6.55 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.46 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.65 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

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 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 yield of 0.58%. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio is currently 22.32%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on Mastercard from $433.00 to $482.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 11th. Robert W. Baird raised their price target on Mastercard from $525.00 to $545.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday. Susquehanna reiterated a “positive” rating and issued a $535.00 price target on shares of Mastercard in a report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Evercore ISI raised their price target on Mastercard from $530.00 to $545.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 26th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on Mastercard from $432.00 to $499.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 1st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price 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.