Principal Financial Group Inc. Has $1.50 Billion Stock Position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 4.8% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,031,915 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after buying an additional 138,842 shares during the quarter. Mastercard comprises 0.8% of Principal Financial Group Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 20th largest holding. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned approximately 0.33% of Mastercard worth $1,497,160,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Mastercard by 0.4% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 75,584,606 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $36,399,279,000 after acquiring an additional 330,872 shares during the period. Capital Research Global Investors raised its stake in shares of Mastercard by 0.3% in the first quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 13,651,904 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $6,574,347,000 after purchasing an additional 43,881 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in Mastercard by 120,665.3% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 8,041,758 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $3,971,020,000 after buying an additional 8,035,099 shares in the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its holdings in Mastercard by 1.4% in the 2nd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 5,082,729 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $2,241,297,000 after buying an additional 71,569 shares during the period. Finally, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board raised its stake in shares of Mastercard by 2.7% in the 2nd quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 4,327,168 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $1,908,973,000 after buying an additional 113,238 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently weighed in on MA shares. BNP Paribas cut shares of Mastercard from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $470.00 target price on the stock. in a research note on Tuesday, September 3rd. Macquarie increased their target price on Mastercard from $505.00 to $565.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Oppenheimer began coverage on Mastercard in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $591.00 price target on the stock. Mizuho increased their price objective on Mastercard from $496.00 to $532.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of Mastercard from $593.00 to $580.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty have given a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Mastercard currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $540.17.

Insider Activity at Mastercard

In related news, major shareholder Foundation Mastercard sold 119,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $468.46, for a total transaction of $55,746,740.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 92,033,308 shares in the company, valued at approximately $43,113,923,465.68. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other news, CMO Venkata R. Madabhushi sold 4,685 shares of Mastercard stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $493.10, for a total transaction of $2,310,173.50. Following the transaction, the chief marketing officer now owns 17,118 shares in the company, valued at $8,440,885.80. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder Foundation Mastercard sold 119,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $468.46, for a total value of $55,746,740.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 92,033,308 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $43,113,923,465.68. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 327,370 shares of company stock worth $153,495,958. 0.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Mastercard Stock Performance

Mastercard stock opened at $521.13 on Thursday. Mastercard Incorporated has a 1 year low of $384.30 and a 1 year high of $527.90. The company’s 50-day moving average is $498.11 and its two-hundred day moving average is $468.02. The company has a current ratio of 1.29, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.36. The company has a market cap of $481.44 billion, a PE ratio of 39.42, a PEG ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 1.10.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The credit services provider reported $3.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.73 by $0.16. The firm had revenue of $7.37 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.27 billion. Mastercard had a net margin of 45.26% and a return on equity of 178.27%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $3.39 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.45 earnings per share for the current year.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 8th. Investors of record on Wednesday, October 9th will be paid a dividend of $0.66 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, October 9th. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.51%. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 19.97%.

Mastercard 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.