Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) is Bristol Gate Capital Partners Inc.’s 4th Largest Position

Bristol Gate Capital Partners Inc. decreased its stake in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 1.0% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 200,822 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 1,961 shares during the quarter. Mastercard comprises approximately 5.1% of Bristol Gate Capital Partners Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 4th largest position. Bristol Gate Capital Partners Inc.’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $105,747,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Mastercard by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 77,179,138 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $40,640,219,000 after acquiring an additional 377,302 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC raised its position in shares of Mastercard by 4.3% in the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 22,267,937 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $11,725,627,000 after purchasing an additional 912,856 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Mastercard by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 18,657,792 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $9,800,202,000 after buying an additional 282,739 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in Mastercard during the 4th quarter valued at $6,022,224,000. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP grew its stake in Mastercard by 9.1% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 9,760,740 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $5,139,713,000 after purchasing an additional 817,836 shares in the last quarter. 97.28% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Mastercard Trading Down 7.7 %

Shares of Mastercard stock opened at $489.94 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 1.03. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $550.92 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $528.50. Mastercard Incorporated has a 52-week low of $428.86 and a 52-week high of $582.23. The firm has a market capitalization of $446.68 billion, a PE ratio of 35.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.06.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The credit services provider reported $3.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.71 by $0.11. Mastercard had a return on equity of 188.47% and a net margin of 45.71%. On average, analysts expect that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 EPS for the current year.

Mastercard announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback program on Tuesday, December 17th that permits the company to repurchase $12.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the credit services provider to repurchase up to 2.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 9th will be given a $0.76 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 9th. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.62%. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 21.89%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Edward Grunde Mclaughlin sold 7,132 shares of Mastercard stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $534.68, for a total value of $3,813,337.76. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 34,524 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $18,459,292.32. The trade was a 17.12 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Michael Miebach sold 15,775 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $550.16, for a total transaction of $8,678,774.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 84,871 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $46,692,629.36. The trade was a 15.67 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have commented on MA shares. Tigress Financial reaffirmed a “strong-buy” rating on shares of Mastercard in a report on Monday, March 10th. Raymond James reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $640.00 price objective (up previously from $614.00) on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Macquarie lifted their target price on Mastercard from $565.00 to $645.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. DZ Bank upgraded Mastercard from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $620.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating and set a $635.00 price objective (up previously from $591.00) on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $606.11.

Mastercard 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.