Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) Shares Acquired by Archer Investment Corp

Archer Investment Corp grew its position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 0.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,737 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after buying an additional 32 shares during the quarter. Archer Investment Corp’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $1,594,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL acquired a new position in Mastercard during the 1st quarter worth $25,000. Hibernia Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in Mastercard during the 3rd quarter worth $27,000. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA acquired a new position in Mastercard during the 4th quarter worth $27,000. Barometer Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in Mastercard during the 3rd quarter worth $36,000. Finally, Mascoma Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Mastercard during the 3rd quarter worth $38,000. 97.28% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Ajay Bhalla sold 4,000 shares of Mastercard stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $435.00, for a total transaction of $1,740,000.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 6,235 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,712,225. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other news, major shareholder Foundation Mastercard sold 200 shares of Mastercard stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $487.25, for a total transaction of $97,450.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 97,543,308 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $47,527,976,823. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Ajay Bhalla sold 4,000 shares of Mastercard stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $435.00, for a total value of $1,740,000.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 6,235 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,712,225. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 41,728 shares of company stock valued at $19,479,753 over the last quarter. Insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

Mastercard Stock Down 0.1 %

Shares of Mastercard stock traded down $0.39 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $459.43. 979,799 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,401,387. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $471.86 and a 200-day simple moving average of $433.03. The company has a quick ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.06. The company has a market cap of $428.60 billion, a PE ratio of 38.84, a PEG ratio of 1.74 and a beta of 1.08. 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. The business had revenue of $6.55 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.46 billion. Mastercard had a return on equity of 191.22% and a net margin of 44.60%. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.65 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 9th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 9th will be issued a $0.66 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 8th. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.57%. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio is currently 22.32%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently weighed in on MA. KeyCorp boosted their target price on Mastercard from $475.00 to $490.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 1st. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on Mastercard from $432.00 to $499.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 1st. Oppenheimer reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $510.00 price objective on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Thursday, February 1st. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on Mastercard from $480.00 to $490.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 1st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Mastercard from $490.00 to $530.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $485.91.

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.