NFJ Investment Group LLC Sells 472 Shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

NFJ Investment Group LLC lessened its holdings in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 0.9% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 52,993 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 472 shares during the quarter. NFJ Investment Group LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $26,168,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Highline Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Mastercard in the third quarter valued at $25,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL bought a new position in shares of Mastercard in the 2nd quarter valued at about $34,000. Fairway Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of Mastercard in the 2nd quarter valued at about $35,000. First Personal Financial Services acquired a new stake in Mastercard in the 3rd quarter valued at about $39,000. Finally, Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Mastercard by 74.0% during the third quarter. Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 87 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Mastercard Price Performance

MA stock traded down $0.58 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $530.78. 315,871 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,452,737. The company has a market capitalization of $487.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.17, a P/E/G ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.36, a current ratio of 1.29 and a quick ratio of 1.29. The company has a 50-day moving average of $510.37 and a two-hundred day moving average of $476.43. Mastercard Incorporated has a twelve month low of $404.32 and a twelve month high of $535.77.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The credit services provider reported $3.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.73 by $0.16. The company had revenue of $7.37 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.27 billion. Mastercard had a net margin of 45.26% and a return on equity of 178.27%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $3.39 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have issued reports on MA shares. Bank of America upped their price objective on Mastercard from $480.00 to $509.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 17th. Citigroup raised their price target on Mastercard from $566.00 to $572.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Compass Point assumed coverage on shares of Mastercard in a report on Wednesday, September 4th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $525.00 price objective on the stock. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $550.00 to $565.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. Finally, Mizuho upped their price target on shares of Mastercard from $496.00 to $532.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $549.16.

Insider Activity

In other Mastercard news, CMO Venkata R. Madabhushi sold 4,685 shares of Mastercard 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 transaction, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 15,031 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,363,085.66. The trade was a 23.76 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.