Two Sigma Advisers LP Trims Stake in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Two Sigma Advisers LP decreased its stake in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 23.4% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 888,000 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 271,000 shares during the period. Mastercard accounts for 1.0% of Two Sigma Advisers LP’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 19th biggest position. Two Sigma Advisers LP owned approximately 0.10% of Mastercard worth $438,494,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 0.7% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 35,288,912 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $17,425,665,000 after purchasing an additional 257,312 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC lifted its position in Mastercard by 3.4% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 21,355,081 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $10,545,139,000 after buying an additional 700,769 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in Mastercard by 120,665.3% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 8,041,758 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $3,971,020,000 after buying an additional 8,035,099 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 6,308,684 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $3,115,228,000 after acquiring an additional 64,456 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of Montreal Can boosted its position in shares of Mastercard by 51.7% in the third quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 5,765,714 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $2,846,187,000 after acquiring an additional 1,965,782 shares during the last quarter. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Mastercard Stock Up 0.7 %

Shares of Mastercard stock opened at $524.91 on Friday. Mastercard Incorporated has a 1-year low of $407.15 and a 1-year high of $535.77. The company has a market capitalization of $481.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.71, a PEG ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 1.10. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $513.14 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $478.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.36, a current ratio of 1.29 and a quick ratio of 1.29.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The credit services provider reported $3.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.73 by $0.16. Mastercard had a net margin of 45.26% and a return on equity of 178.27%. The business had revenue of $7.37 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.27 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $3.39 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 12.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts forecast that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.47 EPS for the current year.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 8th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, October 9th were paid a $0.66 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, October 9th. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.50%. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio is currently 19.97%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have commented on the company. Citigroup upped their price target on Mastercard from $566.00 to $572.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their target price on shares of Mastercard from $510.00 to $580.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $590.00 to $610.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Mastercard from $536.00 to $576.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, Susquehanna upped their price target on shares of Mastercard from $540.00 to $605.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Mastercard currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $549.16.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Mastercard news, CMO Venkata R. Madabhushi sold 4,685 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $489.86, for a total transaction of $2,294,994.10. Following the sale, the chief marketing officer now owns 15,031 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,363,085.66. The trade was a 23.76 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

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.