Violich Capital Management Inc. Has $5.11 Million Stock Holdings in Mastercard Incorporated $MA

Violich Capital Management Inc. cut its stake in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 1.9% during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 9,098 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 173 shares during the period. Mastercard makes up about 0.7% of Violich Capital Management Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 29th biggest position. Violich Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $5,113,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. First Bancorp Inc ME raised its position in shares of Mastercard by 10.5% during the second quarter. First Bancorp Inc ME now owns 809 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $455,000 after purchasing an additional 77 shares during the period. Arcus Capital Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Mastercard by 10.5% during the second quarter. Arcus Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,202 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $676,000 after purchasing an additional 114 shares during the period. Wealthstream Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of Mastercard by 29.3% during the second quarter. Wealthstream Advisors Inc. now owns 817 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $459,000 after purchasing an additional 185 shares during the period. TrueMark Investments LLC acquired a new position in Mastercard during the second quarter valued at $1,417,000. Finally, VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al acquired a new position in Mastercard during the second quarter valued at $46,957,000. 97.28% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO J. Mehra Sachin sold 17,263 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $591.00, for a total transaction of $10,202,433.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 31,234 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,459,294. This represents a 35.60% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

Mastercard Stock Performance

MA opened at $561.42 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $507.53 billion, a PE ratio of 37.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.30 and a beta of 0.97. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $580.22 and a 200-day moving average of $563.27. Mastercard Incorporated has a 52-week low of $465.59 and a 52-week high of $601.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.41, a quick ratio of 1.16 and a current ratio of 1.16.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The credit services provider reported $4.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.05 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $8.13 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.95 billion. Mastercard had a return on equity of 200.01% and a net margin of 44.93%.The firm’s revenue was up 16.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $3.50 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 7th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 9th will be paid a dividend of $0.76 per share. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 9th. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio is 20.50%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently weighed in on MA. Wolfe Research set a $655.00 price target on Mastercard in a research report on Monday, June 23rd. Seaport Res Ptn raised Mastercard from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 14th. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Friday, August 1st. TD Cowen reissued a “buy” rating and set a $645.00 price target on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Monday, August 11th. Finally, KeyCorp upped their price target on Mastercard from $635.00 to $660.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-five have issued a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $634.04.

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.