Guggenheim Capital LLC Sells 9,600 Shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Guggenheim Capital LLC decreased its holdings in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 7.6% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 116,652 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 9,600 shares during the period. Guggenheim Capital LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $61,425,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. NewSquare Capital LLC bought a new stake in Mastercard during the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Marshall Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Mastercard in the 4th quarter worth $30,000. Truvestments Capital LLC increased its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 62.5% in the fourth quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC now owns 65 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. Finally, FPC Investment Advisory Inc. lifted its position in shares of Mastercard by 483.3% in the fourth quarter. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. now owns 70 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Mastercard Stock Up 0.5 %

Shares of MA stock opened at $512.18 on Tuesday. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $541.74 and its 200 day moving average price is $528.66. Mastercard Incorporated has a 1-year low of $428.86 and a 1-year high of $582.23. The company has a market cap of $466.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 1.03.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The credit services provider reported $3.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.71 by $0.11. Mastercard had a net margin of 45.71% and a return on equity of 188.47%. On average, research analysts expect that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 9th will be issued a dividend of $0.76 per share. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.59%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 9th. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 21.89%.

Mastercard announced that its board has approved a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, December 17th that authorizes the company to buyback $12.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the credit services provider to purchase up to 2.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the company. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on Mastercard from $654.00 to $644.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Seaport Res Ptn downgraded shares of Mastercard from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Mastercard from $595.00 to $650.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Tigress Financial reaffirmed a “strong-buy” rating on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Monday, March 10th. Finally, Citigroup boosted their target price on Mastercard from $584.00 to $650.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $607.96.

Insider Activity at Mastercard

In other Mastercard news, CEO Michael Miebach sold 15,775 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $550.16, for a total transaction of $8,678,774.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 84,871 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $46,692,629.36. This trade represents a 15.67 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Edward Grunde Mclaughlin sold 7,132 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $534.68, for a total transaction of $3,813,337.76. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 34,524 shares in the company, valued at $18,459,292.32. This trade represents a 17.12 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.