L.M. Kohn & Company Cuts Stake in Mastercard Incorporated $MA

L.M. Kohn & Company reduced its stake in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 4.5% during the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 9,094 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 432 shares during the period. Mastercard accounts for 1.4% of L.M. Kohn & Company’s portfolio, making the stock its 15th largest position. L.M. Kohn & Company’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $5,110,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Accredited Investors Inc. lifted its holdings in Mastercard by 2.6% in the 1st quarter. Accredited Investors Inc. now owns 718 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $394,000 after purchasing an additional 18 shares during the last quarter. Wealthstream Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in Mastercard by 2.9% in the 1st quarter. Wealthstream Advisors Inc. now owns 632 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $347,000 after purchasing an additional 18 shares during the last quarter. KRS Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Mastercard by 0.6% in the 2nd quarter. KRS Capital Management LLC now owns 2,848 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $1,601,000 after purchasing an additional 18 shares during the last quarter. Pinion Investment Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Mastercard by 0.8% in the 2nd quarter. Pinion Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,272 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $1,276,000 after purchasing an additional 18 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nvest Financial LLC lifted its holdings in Mastercard by 1.2% in the 2nd quarter. Nvest Financial LLC now owns 1,505 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $846,000 after purchasing an additional 18 shares during the last quarter. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Mastercard Stock Down 1.1%

Shares of MA stock opened at $565.79 on Wednesday. Mastercard Incorporated has a 12 month low of $465.59 and a 12 month high of $601.77. The firm has a market cap of $511.48 billion, a PE ratio of 38.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 0.97. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $578.85 and a 200-day moving average of $567.21. The company has a quick ratio of 1.16, a current ratio of 1.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.41.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The credit services provider reported $4.15 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.05 by $0.10. Mastercard had a return on equity of 200.01% and a net margin of 44.93%.The company had revenue of $8.13 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.95 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $3.50 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 16.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 EPS for the current year.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 7th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 9th will be issued a dividend of $0.76 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 9th. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.5%. Mastercard’s payout ratio is 20.50%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft assumed coverage on Mastercard in a report on Thursday, July 17th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $650.00 target price for the company. KeyCorp restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $665.00 target price on shares of Mastercard in a report on Wednesday, October 22nd. Citigroup upgraded Mastercard to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 23rd. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “buy” rating on shares of Mastercard in a report on Friday, August 1st. Finally, Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on Mastercard from $640.00 to $660.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, October 6th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have given a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $638.96.

Insider Activity at Mastercard

In other news, CFO J. Mehra Sachin sold 17,816 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $586.89, for a total transaction of $10,456,032.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 31,234 shares in the company, valued at $18,330,922.26. The trade was a 36.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.09% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.