Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC Grows Stake in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 11.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,892 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 490 shares during the period. Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $2,087,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Northern Trust Corp increased its position in shares of Mastercard by 2.9% in the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 9,075,358 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $3,593,025,000 after purchasing an additional 251,516 shares during the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC increased its holdings in Mastercard by 6.9% in the third quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 7,966,348 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $3,153,957,000 after buying an additional 515,481 shares during the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its stake in Mastercard by 5.9% during the third quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 5,510,259 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $2,181,964,000 after buying an additional 306,663 shares in the last quarter. Royal Bank of Canada lifted its holdings in Mastercard by 1.1% during the 3rd quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 5,314,881 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $2,104,214,000 after buying an additional 56,642 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Mastercard by 0.4% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,557,530 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $1,804,372,000 after acquiring an additional 16,019 shares in the last quarter. 97.28% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Mastercard from $490.00 to $530.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. TD Cowen initiated coverage on shares of Mastercard in a report on Thursday, April 11th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $545.00 target price on the stock. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on Mastercard from $536.00 to $524.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on Mastercard from $433.00 to $482.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 11th. Finally, Mizuho lowered their price objective on Mastercard from $480.00 to $478.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 2nd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Mastercard currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $496.27.

Insider Buying and Selling at Mastercard

In other Mastercard news, CMO Venkata R. Madabhushi sold 16,037 shares of Mastercard stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $475.94, for a total transaction of $7,632,649.78. Following the transaction, the chief marketing officer now owns 12,255 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,832,644.70. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, CEO Michael Miebach sold 7,851 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $475.92, for a total transaction of $3,736,447.92. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 47,640 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $22,672,828.80. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CMO Venkata R. Madabhushi sold 16,037 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $475.94, for a total transaction of $7,632,649.78. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 12,255 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,832,644.70. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 872,088 shares of company stock valued at $395,452,118 in the last three months. 0.13% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Mastercard Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MA traded up $2.16 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $451.53. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 973,568 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,455,414. Mastercard Incorporated has a one year low of $357.85 and a one year high of $490.00. The company has a market cap of $421.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.74 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $469.07 and a 200 day moving average price of $438.74. The company has a current ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.86.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 1st. The credit services provider reported $3.31 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.22 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $6.35 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.34 billion. Mastercard had a net margin of 46.09% and a return on equity of 183.70%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 10.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.80 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts expect that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.22 EPS for the current year.

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.