Luts & Greenleigh Group Inc. Raises Stake in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Luts & Greenleigh Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 31.4% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 799 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 191 shares during the period. Luts & Greenleigh Group Inc.’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $395,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Westend Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the 1st quarter worth about $27,000. Palisade Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in Mastercard in the first quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Scarborough Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Mastercard during the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL acquired a new stake in Mastercard during the second quarter worth approximately $34,000. Finally, Fairway Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $35,000. 97.28% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Mastercard

In related news, CMO Venkata R. Madabhushi sold 4,685 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $489.86, for a total value of $2,294,994.10. Following the sale, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 15,031 shares in the company, valued at $7,363,085.66. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, CMO Venkata R. Madabhushi sold 4,685 shares of Mastercard stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $489.86, for a total transaction of $2,294,994.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 15,031 shares in the company, valued at $7,363,085.66. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO J. Mehra Sachin sold 13,439 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $455.00, for a total value of $6,114,745.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 27,304 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,423,320. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 340,809 shares of company stock valued at $159,610,703. Insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Mastercard Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MA traded up $0.57 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $507.23. 2,883,563 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,440,577. 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 $509.88. The company has a market cap of $471.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.32, a PEG ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 1.10. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $482.08 and its 200 day moving average price is $463.06.

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

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 8th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, October 9th will be given a dividend of $0.66 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, October 9th. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.52%. Mastercard’s payout ratio is 20.99%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently commented on MA. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Mastercard from $500.00 to $570.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 20th. TD Cowen lifted their target price on Mastercard from $532.00 to $533.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. Argus raised Mastercard to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. Bank of America lifted their price target on Mastercard from $480.00 to $509.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 17th. Finally, William Blair raised shares of Mastercard to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have issued a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $523.27.

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.