First United Bank & Trust Reduces Stock Position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

First United Bank & Trust decreased its holdings in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 2.8% during the first quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 4,149 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 120 shares during the quarter. First United Bank & Trust’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $2,274,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. Simon Quick Advisors LLC grew its stake in Mastercard by 22.0% in the first quarter. Simon Quick Advisors LLC now owns 7,899 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $4,329,000 after purchasing an additional 1,426 shares in the last quarter. Arvest Investments Inc. bought a new stake in Mastercard during the first quarter valued at about $624,000. Zhang Financial LLC grew its stake in Mastercard by 17.0% in the first quarter. Zhang Financial LLC now owns 2,024 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $1,109,000 after purchasing an additional 294 shares during the last quarter. Noble Wealth Management PBC raised its holdings in Mastercard by 2.7% in the first quarter. Noble Wealth Management PBC now owns 1,140 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $625,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Magnolia Private Wealth LLC lifted its position in shares of Mastercard by 6.2% during the first quarter. Magnolia Private Wealth LLC now owns 887 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $486,000 after buying an additional 52 shares during the last quarter. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MA has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Friday, June 6th. Wall Street Zen lowered Mastercard from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, June 6th. Evercore ISI initiated coverage on Mastercard in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. They issued an “in-line” rating and a $550.00 price objective for the company. Tigress Financial reaffirmed a “strong-buy” rating on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Monday, March 10th. Finally, KeyCorp raised their price target on Mastercard from $630.00 to $635.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $610.00.

Mastercard Stock Performance

NYSE:MA opened at $590.78 on Thursday. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $538.62 billion, a PE ratio of 42.53, a P/E/G ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.05. Mastercard Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $428.86 and a fifty-two week high of $594.71. The company has a fifty day moving average of $551.43 and a two-hundred day moving average of $543.22.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The credit services provider reported $3.73 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.57 by $0.16. Mastercard had a net margin of 45.71% and a return on equity of 188.47%. The firm had revenue of $7.25 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.12 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.31 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts forecast that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Michael Miebach sold 15,775 shares of Mastercard stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $550.16, for a total transaction of $8,678,774.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 84,871 shares in the company, valued at $46,692,629.36. The trade was a 15.67% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, 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 transaction of $3,813,337.76. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 34,524 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,459,292.32. The trade was a 17.12% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 37,258 shares of company stock valued at $20,885,067 in the last 90 days. 0.09% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.