MML Investors Services LLC Grows Holdings in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

MML Investors Services LLC raised its holdings in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 3.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 169,126 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 6,194 shares during the quarter. MML Investors Services LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $89,056,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in MA. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in Mastercard by 0.5% during the 4th 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 during the period. FMR LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 4.3% during the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 22,267,937 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $11,725,627,000 after purchasing an additional 912,856 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in Mastercard by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 18,657,792 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $9,800,202,000 after buying an additional 282,739 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Mastercard in the 4th quarter valued at $6,022,224,000. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP raised its position in Mastercard by 9.1% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 9,760,740 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $5,139,713,000 after buying an additional 817,836 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on MA. Evercore ISI began coverage on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. They set an “in-line” rating and a $550.00 price target on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Mastercard from $590.00 to $610.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Tigress Financial restated a “strong-buy” rating on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Monday, March 10th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on Mastercard from $572.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, William Blair reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Mastercard in a report on Friday, January 31st. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $607.96.

Mastercard Stock Up 0.8 %

Shares of NYSE MA opened at $517.46 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $537.86 and its 200 day moving average price is $529.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 1.03. The firm has a market cap of $471.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.06. Mastercard Incorporated has a 1 year low of $428.86 and a 1 year high of $582.23.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The credit services provider reported $3.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.71 by $0.11. Mastercard had a return on equity of 188.47% and a net margin of 45.71%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 earnings per share for the current year.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 9th will be paid a dividend of $0.76 per share. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.59%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 9th. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio is currently 21.89%.

Insider Transactions at Mastercard

In other news, insider Edward Grunde Mclaughlin sold 7,132 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $534.68, for a total transaction of $3,813,337.76. Following the completion of 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 position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Michael Miebach sold 15,775 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $550.16, for a total value of $8,678,774.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 84,871 shares in the company, valued at $46,692,629.36. This trade represents a 15.67 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.10% 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. 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.