WT Wealth Management Reduces Stock Holdings in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

WT Wealth Management reduced its stake in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 15.9% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 5,307 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 1,003 shares during the period. WT Wealth Management’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $2,740,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MA. Eastern Bank increased its stake in shares of Mastercard by 10.0% during the third quarter. Eastern Bank now owns 15,433 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $7,621,000 after buying an additional 1,399 shares during the period. Sierra Capital LLC increased its stake in Mastercard by 37.2% in the third quarter. Sierra Capital LLC now owns 5,584 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $2,757,000 after purchasing an additional 1,513 shares during the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC grew its position in shares of Mastercard by 1.0% in the 3rd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 21,133 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $10,435,000 after buying an additional 213 shares during the last quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC raised its stake in Mastercard by 17.3% during the 3rd quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 18,467 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $9,119,000 after acquiring an additional 2,721 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dock Street Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in Mastercard by 7.1% in the third quarter. Dock Street Asset Management Inc. now owns 65,306 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $32,248,000 after acquiring an additional 4,334 shares during the last quarter. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on MA shares. BNP Paribas downgraded Mastercard from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $470.00 price target on the stock. in a research note on Tuesday, September 3rd. Bank of America lifted their target price on shares of Mastercard from $480.00 to $509.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 17th. TD Cowen raised their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $532.00 to $533.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. Compass Point began coverage on shares of Mastercard in a report on Wednesday, September 4th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $525.00 target price for the company. Finally, Robert W. Baird raised their price target on Mastercard from $545.00 to $575.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have issued a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $525.68.

Mastercard Price Performance

Shares of MA stock traded down $1.30 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $513.71. 887,053 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,434,158. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $488.09 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $464.33. The firm has a market cap of $477.55 billion, a PE ratio of 40.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.95, a current ratio of 1.14 and a quick ratio of 1.14. Mastercard Incorporated has a 1-year low of $359.77 and a 1-year high of $518.82.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The credit services provider reported $3.59 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.51 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $6.96 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.85 billion. Mastercard had a net margin of 46.45% and a return on equity of 179.78%. On average, equities research analysts expect that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 8th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, October 9th will be issued a dividend of $0.66 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, October 9th. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.51%. Mastercard’s payout ratio is 20.99%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Mastercard

In other news, CMO Venkata R. Madabhushi sold 4,685 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, September 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $493.10, for a total value of $2,310,173.50. Following the transaction, the chief marketing officer now owns 17,118 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,440,885.80. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In other news, major shareholder Foundation Mastercard sold 90,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $468.80, for a total transaction of $42,192,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 91,649,308 shares in the company, valued at $42,965,195,590.40. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CMO Venkata R. Madabhushi sold 4,685 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $493.10, for a total value of $2,310,173.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief marketing officer now owns 17,118 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,440,885.80. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 340,809 shares of company stock valued at $159,610,703. Company insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

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.