Clifford Swan Investment Counsel LLC Cuts Stock Position in Mastercard Incorporated $MA

Clifford Swan Investment Counsel LLC lowered its holdings in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 3.0% during the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 2,391 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 75 shares during the period. Clifford Swan Investment Counsel LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $1,343,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. LGT Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Mastercard in the second quarter worth $25,000. Family Legacy Financial Solutions LLC bought a new stake in shares of Mastercard in the second quarter valued at $26,000. Flaharty Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Mastercard in the first quarter valued at $27,000. Keystone Global Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Mastercard in the first quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, IMG Wealth Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Mastercard in the second quarter valued at $31,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO J. Mehra Sachin sold 17,816 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $586.89, for a total transaction of $10,456,032.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 31,234 shares in the company, valued at $18,330,922.26. The trade was a 36.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.09% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Mastercard Stock Performance

NYSE:MA opened at $573.59 on Friday. 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 Incorporated has a 52-week low of $465.59 and a 52-week high of $601.77. The firm has a market cap of $518.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.68, a PEG ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 0.97. The business’s fifty day moving average is $579.67 and its 200 day moving average is $564.74.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 31st. The credit services provider reported $4.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.05 by $0.10. Mastercard had a return on equity of 200.01% and a net margin of 44.93%.The company had revenue of $8.13 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.95 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $3.50 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 16.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 EPS for the current year.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MA has been the topic of several research reports. Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on Mastercard from $640.00 to $660.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, October 6th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Mastercard from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, October 18th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft initiated coverage on Mastercard in a research note on Thursday, July 17th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $650.00 target price on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “buy” rating on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on Mastercard from $639.00 to $661.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have issued a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Mastercard has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $638.00.

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.