Centre Asset Management LLC Increases Holdings in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Centre Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 3.5% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 9,884 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after buying an additional 331 shares during the quarter. Centre Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $3,887,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Financial Connections Group Inc. bought a new position in Mastercard during the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL bought a new position in Mastercard during the 1st quarter valued at about $25,000. Delta Asset Management LLC TN bought a new position in Mastercard during the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Creative Capital Management Investments LLC bought a new position in Mastercard during the 1st quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, Quarry LP bought a new position in Mastercard during the 1st quarter valued at about $40,000. 74.94% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Mastercard Stock Down 0.7 %

MA stock opened at $413.35 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $389.46 billion, a PE ratio of 38.74, a P/E/G ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.10. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $401.06 and its 200 day moving average is $380.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.57, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a current ratio of 1.13. Mastercard Incorporated has a one year low of $276.87 and a one year high of $418.60.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 27th. The credit services provider reported $2.89 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.84 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $6.30 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.18 billion. Mastercard had a net margin of 43.37% and a return on equity of 178.10%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 14.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.56 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that Mastercard Incorporated will post 12.13 EPS for the current year.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 9th. Investors of record on Friday, July 7th were paid a dividend of $0.57 per share. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.55%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, July 6th. Mastercard’s payout ratio is currently 21.37%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently commented on MA. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Mastercard from $440.00 to $443.00 in a report on Friday, July 28th. Susquehanna upped their target price on shares of Mastercard from $433.00 to $486.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a research note on Friday, July 28th. Citigroup upped their target price on shares of Mastercard from $440.00 to $455.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Mastercard from $442.00 to $510.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 22nd. Finally, StockNews.com began coverage on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Thursday, August 17th. They issued a “buy” rating on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $440.96.

Insider Buying and Selling at Mastercard

In other Mastercard news, insider Hai Ling sold 3,324 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $415.00, for a total value of $1,379,460.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 17,577 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,294,455. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other Mastercard news, CFO J. Mehra Sachin sold 6,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $413.65, for a total value of $2,481,900.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 20,707 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,565,450.55. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Hai Ling sold 3,324 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $415.00, for a total transaction of $1,379,460.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 17,577 shares in the company, valued at $7,294,455. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 407,267 shares of company stock valued at $161,485,243. Insiders own 0.13% 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. It facilitates the processing of payment transactions, including authorization, clearing, and settlement, as well as delivers other payment-related products and services.