Paladin Advisory Group LLC Has $1.21 Million Stake in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Paladin Advisory Group LLC cut its position in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 5.0% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 2,838 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 150 shares during the quarter. Paladin Advisory Group LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $1,210,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA acquired a new position in Mastercard in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL bought a new stake in shares of Mastercard in the 1st quarter valued at $25,000. Barometer Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Mastercard during the 3rd quarter valued at $36,000. Mascoma Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Mastercard during the third quarter worth $38,000. Finally, Thomas J. Herzfeld Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in Mastercard by 661.5% in the third quarter. Thomas J. Herzfeld Advisors Inc. now owns 99 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 86 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other Mastercard news, major shareholder Foundation Mastercard sold 200 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 97,543,308 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $47,527,976,823. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, major shareholder Foundation Mastercard sold 200 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $487.25, for a total value of $97,450.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 97,543,308 shares in the company, valued at approximately $47,527,976,823. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CMO Venkata R. Madabhushi sold 16,037 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $475.94, for a total transaction of $7,632,649.78. Following the sale, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 12,255 shares in the company, valued at $5,832,644.70. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 148,728 shares of company stock valued at $68,483,403 in the last three months. Company insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

Mastercard Stock Performance

Mastercard stock traded up $0.69 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $455.39. 2,545,303 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,408,385. The firm has a market capitalization of $424.83 billion, a PE ratio of 38.42, a P/E/G ratio of 1.75 and a beta of 1.08. 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 business’s fifty day simple moving average is $471.75 and its 200 day simple moving average is $433.36. Mastercard Incorporated has a one year low of $357.85 and a one year high of $490.00.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last released its 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 company had revenue of $6.55 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.46 billion. Mastercard had a return on equity of 191.22% and a net margin of 44.60%. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.65 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.35 earnings per share for the current year.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 9th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 9th will be paid a $0.66 dividend. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.58%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 8th. Mastercard’s payout ratio is 22.32%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $480.00 to $490.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 1st. Susquehanna reiterated a “positive” rating and issued a $535.00 price target on shares of Mastercard in a report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on Mastercard from $525.00 to $545.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday. KeyCorp upped their target price on Mastercard from $475.00 to $490.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 1st. Finally, Raymond James lifted their price target on shares of Mastercard from $452.00 to $504.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 1st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $490.23.

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.