Peachtree Investment Partners LLC Has $7.39 Million Holdings in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Peachtree Investment Partners LLC trimmed its position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 0.9% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 14,043 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 129 shares during the period. Mastercard comprises approximately 2.8% of Peachtree Investment Partners LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 10th biggest holding. Peachtree Investment Partners LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $7,394,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of MA. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its stake in Mastercard by 4.8% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 3,031,915 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $1,497,160,000 after acquiring an additional 138,842 shares during the last quarter. iSAM Funds UK Ltd purchased a new stake in Mastercard in the third quarter worth $230,000. Raab & Moskowitz Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Mastercard by 1.5% in the 3rd quarter. Raab & Moskowitz Asset Management LLC now owns 1,398 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $690,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its position in Mastercard by 0.7% during the 3rd quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 698,210 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $344,776,000 after purchasing an additional 4,861 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Groupama Asset Managment grew its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 3.5% during the third quarter. Groupama Asset Managment now owns 19,897 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $9,825,000 after buying an additional 672 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Mastercard Price Performance

Shares of MA opened at $485.24 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $442.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.93, a P/E/G ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.06. The business’s 50-day moving average is $549.68 and its two-hundred day moving average is $528.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 1.03. Mastercard Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $428.86 and a fifty-two week high of $582.23.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The credit services provider reported $3.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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%. Research analysts predict that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 earnings per share for the current year.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The firm 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 $0.76 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 9th. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.63%. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio is presently 21.89%.

Mastercard declared that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Tuesday, December 17th that allows the company to repurchase $12.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the credit services provider to purchase up to 2.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are generally a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Seaport Res Ptn downgraded Mastercard from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Citigroup upped their target price on shares of Mastercard from $584.00 to $650.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Piper Sandler reissued 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. Macquarie raised their target price on Mastercard from $565.00 to $645.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Barclays lifted their target price on Mastercard from $595.00 to $650.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-five have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $607.07.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Edward Grunde Mclaughlin sold 7,132 shares of Mastercard stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 sale, 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 sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Michael Miebach sold 15,775 shares of Mastercard stock in a transaction 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 directly owns 84,871 shares in the company, valued at approximately $46,692,629.36. This trade represents a 15.67 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.