Xponance Inc. Grows Stock Holdings in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Xponance Inc. lifted its position in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 0.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 208,534 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after buying an additional 1,375 shares during the quarter. Mastercard makes up 1.1% of Xponance Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 13th largest holding. Xponance Inc.’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $88,942,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. State Street Corp lifted its stake in Mastercard by 3.9% in the 1st quarter. State Street Corp now owns 34,759,814 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $12,632,032,000 after purchasing an additional 1,303,477 shares in the last quarter. Morgan Stanley increased its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 17.7% in the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 15,843,692 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $5,509,328,000 after buying an additional 2,385,640 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Mastercard in the 4th quarter worth about $3,308,223,000. Northern Trust Corp increased its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 2.9% in the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 9,075,358 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $3,593,025,000 after buying an additional 251,516 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nuveen Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in Mastercard by 3.9% during the 2nd quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC now owns 8,420,213 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $3,311,670,000 after purchasing an additional 318,077 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently commented on MA shares. TD Cowen started coverage on shares of Mastercard in a report on Thursday, April 11th. They set a “buy” rating and a $545.00 price target on the stock. Evercore ISI upped their price target on shares of Mastercard from $530.00 to $545.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 26th. Susquehanna reaffirmed a “positive” rating and issued a $535.00 price target on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Wednesday, April 3rd. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on shares of Mastercard from $433.00 to $482.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 11th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upped their price target 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. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $490.23.

Insider Buying and Selling at Mastercard

In related news, CEO Michael Miebach sold 7,851 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $475.92, for a total value of $3,736,447.92. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 47,640 shares in the company, valued at approximately $22,672,828.80. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In other news, insider Ajay Bhalla sold 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $435.00, for a total transaction of $1,740,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 6,235 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,712,225. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Michael Miebach sold 7,851 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $475.92, for a total transaction of $3,736,447.92. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 47,640 shares in the company, valued at $22,672,828.80. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 41,728 shares of company stock valued at $19,479,753. 0.13% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Mastercard Stock Down 1.2 %

Shares of MA stock traded down $5.46 during trading on Thursday, reaching $454.70. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,995,546 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,397,894. The company has a market capitalization of $424.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.89, a P/E/G ratio of 1.74 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.06, a current ratio of 1.17 and a quick ratio of 1.17. Mastercard Incorporated has a 1-year low of $357.85 and a 1-year high of $490.00. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $471.83 and its 200 day moving average price is $433.21.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 31st. The credit services provider reported $3.18 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.08 by $0.10. Mastercard had a net margin of 44.60% and a return on equity of 191.22%. The firm had revenue of $6.55 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.46 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.65 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.36 EPS for the current year.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 8th. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.58%. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio is currently 22.32%.

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.