Elk River Wealth Management LLC Acquires 77 Shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Elk River Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 0.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 27,848 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 77 shares during the period. Mastercard comprises approximately 2.3% of Elk River Wealth Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 12th biggest position. Elk River Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $11,877,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of MA. Hibernia Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in Mastercard in the 3rd quarter valued at about $27,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL bought a new position in shares of Mastercard during the 1st quarter worth approximately $25,000. Bollard Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Mastercard during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $29,000. Barometer Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Mastercard during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $36,000. Finally, Mascoma Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Mastercard during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $38,000. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Mastercard

In related news, major shareholder Foundation Mastercard sold 200 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $487.25, for a total transaction of $97,450.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 97,543,308 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $47,527,976,823. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Mastercard news, CMO Venkata R. Madabhushi sold 16,037 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $475.94, for a total value of $7,632,649.78. Following the sale, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 12,255 shares in the company, valued at $5,832,644.70. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder Foundation Mastercard sold 200 shares of Mastercard stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $487.25, for a total value of $97,450.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 97,543,308 shares in the company, valued at approximately $47,527,976,823. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 50,628 shares of company stock worth $23,309,067. Corporate insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on MA shares. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Mastercard from $490.00 to $530.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. Tigress Financial boosted their price target on shares of Mastercard from $476.00 to $495.00 and gave the company a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 7th. Monness Crespi & Hardt began coverage on Mastercard in a research note on Wednesday, December 20th. They issued a “neutral” rating on the stock. Oppenheimer reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $510.00 target price on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Thursday, February 1st. Finally, KeyCorp upped their price target on shares of Mastercard from $475.00 to $490.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 1st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-one have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $479.62.

Mastercard Stock Down 0.4 %

Mastercard stock traded down $1.70 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $475.10. The stock had a trading volume of 1,007,540 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,424,118. Mastercard Incorporated has a 52-week low of $352.80 and a 52-week high of $490.00. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $462.19 and a 200 day moving average price of $425.66. The company has a quick ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.06. The stock has a market cap of $443.22 billion, a PE ratio of 40.20, a P/E/G ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.08.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, January 31st. The credit services provider reported $3.18 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.08 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $6.55 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.46 billion. Mastercard had a net margin of 44.60% and a return on equity of 191.22%. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.65 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.36 EPS for the current year.

Mastercard announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, December 5th that authorizes the company to repurchase $11.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the credit services provider to repurchase up to 2.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 9th. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 9th will be given a $0.66 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 8th. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.56%. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio is presently 22.32%.

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.