Mastercard Incorporated $MA Stock: WealthPlan Investment Management LLC Trims Holdings

WealthPlan Investment Management LLC cut its stake in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 5.7% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 14,701 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 890 shares during the quarter. WealthPlan Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $8,107,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of MA. State Street Corp boosted its stake in Mastercard by 1.3% during the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 36,964,305 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $18,984,867,000 after purchasing an additional 486,283 shares during the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC boosted its position in Mastercard by 10.4% during the first quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 5,123,041 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $2,559,779,000 after acquiring an additional 480,725 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in shares of Mastercard by 1.0% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 4,225,359 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $2,111,216,000 after purchasing an additional 42,871 shares in the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership grew its holdings in Mastercard by 17.8% in the 1st quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 3,666,018 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $1,831,763,000 after buying an additional 554,366 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Amundi increased its stake in shares of Mastercard by 5.8% in the 2nd quarter. Amundi now owns 3,626,416 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $1,862,527,000 after acquiring an additional 199,424 shares during the last quarter. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Mastercard

In related news, CEO Michael Miebach sold 15,372 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $575.00, for a total transaction of $8,838,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 93,693 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $53,873,475. This trade represents a 14.09% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Julius Genachowski sold 370 shares of Mastercard stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $590.21, for a total transaction of $218,377.70. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 8,237 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,861,559.77. This trade represents a 4.30% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 68,359 shares of company stock valued at $39,290,046 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

Mastercard Trading Up 2.0%

Shares of Mastercard stock traded up $11.99 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $615.24. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,510,467 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,501,759. The stock has a market cap of $538.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.83, a P/E/G ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 0.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.96, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a current ratio of 1.06. Mastercard Incorporated has a twelve month low of $464.52 and a twelve month high of $616.27. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $574.08 and a 200-day moving average of $533.48.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 30th. The credit services provider reported $5.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.77 by $0.27. The firm had revenue of $9.28 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.08 billion. Mastercard had a return on equity of 239.99% and a net margin of 46.34%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 14.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $4.15 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Mastercard Incorporated will post 19.90 EPS for the current year.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 9th will be given a dividend of $0.87 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 9th. This represents a $3.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.6%. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 19.14%.

Trending Headlines about Mastercard

Here are the key news stories impacting Mastercard this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Mastercard and BVNK launched the Mastercard Global Money Platform, a single-API infrastructure service that enables banks, fintechs and businesses to manage traditional currencies and stablecoins. The product is the first major integration since Mastercard acquired BVNK in August and could expand the company’s role in cross-border and digital-asset payments. Mastercard and BVNK launch Global Money Platform
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts and technical strategists continue to highlight Mastercard’s winning streak and potential for a longer-term breakout. The company has a broad “Buy” consensus, with several firms recently raising price targets, including UBS at $670 and Daiwa at $650. Wall Street views on Mastercard
• Positive Sentiment: Investors are looking for double-digit earnings growth in the upcoming third-quarter report. Mastercard’s latest quarter exceeded consensus estimates for earnings and revenue, with revenue increasing 14.1% year over year, supporting confidence in continued operating momentum. Mastercard earnings expectations
• Positive Sentiment: Mastercard is expanding its payments ecosystem through personalized payment strategies, crypto-linked card programs and stablecoin settlement, while also pursuing cybersecurity and commercial fleet-payment opportunities in emerging markets. These initiatives could create additional transaction volume over time. Mastercard personalized payments strategy
• Neutral Sentiment: Director Julius Genachowski sold shares under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan. The transactions modestly reduced his holdings but are less concerning because they were scheduled in advance. Mastercard director stock sale

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price target on shares of Mastercard from $642.00 to $696.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, August 31st. Clear Str upgraded shares of Mastercard to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. Truist Financial raised their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $554.00 to $633.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $665.00 target price on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Loop Capital boosted their target price on shares of Mastercard from $631.00 to $647.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 31st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty have given a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Mastercard currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $682.66.

Mastercard Profile

Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE: MA) is a global payments technology company that operates a network connecting consumers, financial institutions, merchants, governments and businesses. The company facilitates the authorization, clearing and settlement of electronic payment transactions, while generally not issuing cards or extending credit itself. Its network supports payments made in stores, online and through mobile devices.

Mastercard’s products and services include consumer and commercial payment cards, digital payment solutions, payment processing, fraud prevention, cybersecurity, identity verification, data and analytics, and open banking tools.