Boston Research & Management Inc. Trims Position in Mastercard Incorporated $MA

Boston Research & Management Inc. decreased its position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 1.9% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 20,421 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 396 shares during the quarter. Mastercard accounts for approximately 2.7% of Boston Research & Management Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 5th largest position. Boston Research & Management Inc.’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $11,475,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its stake in Mastercard by 42.3% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 6,824 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $3,594,000 after acquiring an additional 2,028 shares during the period. Lifeworks Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Mastercard during the 1st quarter valued at $240,000. Caliber Wealth Management LLC KS acquired a new position in Mastercard during the 1st quarter worth $478,000. Angeles Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Mastercard by 0.4% in the first quarter. Angeles Wealth Management LLC now owns 6,304 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $3,455,000 after purchasing an additional 22 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GLOBALT Investments LLC GA increased its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 0.4% during the first quarter. GLOBALT Investments LLC GA now owns 13,744 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $7,533,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares during the period. 97.28% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Mastercard from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, October 18th. TD Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $645.00 price target on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Monday, August 11th. Morgan Stanley set a $665.00 price objective on shares of Mastercard and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, October 31st. Macquarie boosted their target price on Mastercard from $655.00 to $660.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, October 31st. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $713.00 price target on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have given a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $652.50.

Mastercard Trading Up 2.4%

Shares of NYSE:MA opened at $540.42 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.41, a quick ratio of 1.16 and a current ratio of 1.16. The stock has a market capitalization of $485.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.44, a PEG ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 0.92. Mastercard Incorporated has a 1-year low of $465.59 and a 1-year high of $601.77. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $563.32 and a 200 day moving average price of $569.15.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 30th. The credit services provider reported $4.38 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.31 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $8.60 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.53 billion. Mastercard had a return on equity of 200.01% and a net margin of 44.93%.The company’s quarterly revenue was up 16.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.89 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 7th. Investors of record on Thursday, October 9th were given a $0.76 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, October 9th. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.6%. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 19.44%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Mastercard news, CFO J. Mehra Sachin sold 17,263 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $591.00, for a total transaction of $10,202,433.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 31,234 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,459,294. The trade was a 35.60% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.09% 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.