Michael Miebach Sells 15,775 Shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) Stock

Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) CEO Michael Miebach sold 15,775 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the chief executive officer now owns 84,871 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $46,692,629.36. This trade represents a 15.67 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website.

Mastercard Stock Down 3.0 %

Shares of NYSE:MA opened at $540.57 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $550.58 and its 200-day moving average is $526.65. Mastercard Incorporated has a 1 year low of $428.86 and a 1 year high of $582.23. The company has a market capitalization of $492.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.92, a P/E/G ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 1.03.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The credit services provider reported $3.82 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.71 by $0.11. Mastercard had a net margin of 45.71% and a return on equity of 188.47%. Equities research analysts predict that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 earnings per share for the current year.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 9th will be paid a dividend of $0.76 per share. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.56%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 9th. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 21.89%.

Mastercard announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback plan on Tuesday, December 17th that permits the company to repurchase $12.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the credit services provider to buy up to 2.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Mastercard

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Fire Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Mastercard in the 4th quarter worth $534,000. Fairtree Asset Management Pty Ltd bought a new position in shares of Mastercard in the fourth quarter valued at $455,000. M1 Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Mastercard during the fourth quarter valued at about $406,000. DSG Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the fourth quarter worth about $4,886,000. Finally, Chancellor Financial Group WB LP acquired a new stake in shares of Mastercard in the 4th quarter worth about $1,041,000. Institutional investors own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently commented on MA shares. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $635.00 price target (up from $591.00) on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on shares of Mastercard from $572.00 to $650.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. William Blair reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Macquarie raised their price objective on Mastercard from $565.00 to $645.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Seaport Res Ptn downgraded Mastercard from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $606.11.

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.