Bank of Nova Scotia Sells 264,142 Shares of Mastercard Incorporated $MA

Bank of Nova Scotia trimmed its position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 63.0% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 155,221 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 264,142 shares during the period. Bank of Nova Scotia’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $87,223,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. LGT Financial Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Mastercard in the second quarter worth $25,000. Family Legacy Financial Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in Mastercard in the 2nd quarter valued at $26,000. Flaharty Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in Mastercard during the 1st quarter worth about $27,000. Keystone Global Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Mastercard during the 1st quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, IMG Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Mastercard in the 2nd quarter valued at about $31,000. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Mastercard Stock Performance

Shares of Mastercard stock opened at $545.48 on Monday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $556.55 and a 200-day moving average of $567.01. The company has a market cap of $489.84 billion, a PE ratio of 34.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 0.87. The company has a current ratio of 1.12, a quick ratio of 1.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.40. Mastercard Incorporated has a 1-year low of $465.59 and a 1-year high of $601.77.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 30th. The credit services provider reported $4.38 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.31 by $0.07. Mastercard had a net margin of 45.28% and a return on equity of 202.03%. The business had revenue of $8.60 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.53 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.89 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 16.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $713.00 price objective on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. TD Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $645.00 price target on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Monday, August 11th. Compass Point set a $620.00 price objective on shares of Mastercard and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, October 31st. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $669.00 to $660.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 31st. Finally, UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Mastercard from $690.00 to $700.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 31st. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have assigned a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $652.50.

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.