1,245,051 Shares in Mastercard Incorporated $MA Acquired by Fundsmith LLP

Fundsmith LLP purchased a new stake in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) during the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund purchased 1,245,051 shares of the credit services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $639,458,000. Mastercard accounts for about 4.7% of Fundsmith LLP’s portfolio, making the stock its 6th largest holding.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MA. Border to Coast Pensions Partnership Ltd increased its stake in Mastercard by 7.3% in the 1st quarter. Border to Coast Pensions Partnership Ltd now owns 139,844 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $70,089,000 after buying an additional 9,504 shares during the period. Canada Post Corp Registered Pension Plan raised its position in Mastercard by 6.1% during the 4th quarter. Canada Post Corp Registered Pension Plan now owns 65,414 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $37,344,000 after buying an additional 3,768 shares during the last quarter. Marble Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Mastercard in the 4th quarter worth $1,328,000. Charles Lim Capital Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Mastercard in the fourth quarter valued at about $15,699,000. Finally, Gamco Investors INC. ET AL increased its stake in shares of Mastercard by 5.4% during the first quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL now owns 28,205 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $14,093,000 after acquiring an additional 1,434 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Key Mastercard News

Here are the key news stories impacting Mastercard this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Mastercard and QNB Group processed Syria’s first international card transaction in more than 15 years. The milestone marks the reopening and modernization of Syria’s international payments infrastructure following the lifting of certain U.S. restrictions. Although the near-term financial contribution is likely to be small, the development creates a potential new market and demonstrates Mastercard’s ability to support payments expansion. Syria marks first international card transaction in more than 15 years with Mastercard and QNB Group
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts have given Mastercard a consensus “Buy” rating. Continued Wall Street support adds to the bullish backdrop, though the rating itself may already be reflected in the share price. Mastercard Incorporated Given Consensus Rating of Buy by Analysts
• Positive Sentiment: Pershing Square founder Bill Ackman added Mastercard to the hedge fund’s portfolio. The purchase may improve investor sentiment by signaling confidence from a prominent long-term investor, although it does not change Mastercard’s operating outlook. Bill Ackman Just Made His Biggest Portfolio Overhaul in Years
• Positive Sentiment: A partnership with Klook targets growing travel and experiences spending across Asia Pacific. Mastercard cardholder benefits and additional travel-related payment touchpoints could support transaction volume in a high-growth region. Klook and Mastercard collaborate to enhance travelers’ experiences across Asia Pacific
• Neutral Sentiment: Mastercard will participate in the Goldman Sachs Communacopia + Technology Conference on September 10, where CFO Ling Hai is scheduled to speak. Investors may look for updates on growth, margins and capital allocation, but no new financial information was provided. Mastercard to Participate in Upcoming Investor Conference
• Neutral Sentiment: Mastercard’s name appears as a supporter of an XRPL/Ripple hackathon, but reports caution that the sponsorship does not represent a new cryptocurrency partnership or major product launch. Mastercard’s Name Is on the Ripple Hackathon, But Don’t Get Ahead of Yourself

Mastercard Trading Up 0.0%

Shares of MA opened at $595.51 on Monday. Mastercard Incorporated has a twelve month low of $464.52 and a twelve month high of $601.62. The company has a current ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.96. The firm has a market capitalization of $521.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.76, a PEG ratio of 1.79 and a beta of 0.71. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $549.15 and its two-hundred day moving average is $519.51.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The credit services provider reported $5.04 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.77 by $0.27. The business had revenue of $9.28 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.08 billion. Mastercard had a return on equity of 239.99% and a net margin of 46.34%.The company’s quarterly revenue was up 14.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $4.15 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Mastercard Incorporated will post 19.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 7th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 9th were given a dividend of $0.87 per share. This represents a $3.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 9th. Mastercard’s payout ratio is presently 19.14%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Piper Sandler initiated coverage on shares of Mastercard in a report on Monday, June 29th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $597.00 price target for the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on Mastercard from $665.00 to $685.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, July 31st. Dbs Bank raised Mastercard to a “moderate buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 21st. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $701.00 price target on shares of Mastercard in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, Barclays upped their price objective on Mastercard from $640.00 to $660.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, July 31st. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-five have assigned a Buy rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $664.71.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider J. Mehra Sachin sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $572.07, for a total transaction of $572,070.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 39,916 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $22,834,746.12. This trade represents a 2.44% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Michael Miebach sold 15,372 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $575.00, for a total value of $8,838,900.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 93,693 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $53,873,475. The trade was a 14.09% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 71,357 shares of company stock valued at $40,637,262 in the last three months. 0.09% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Mastercard Profile

Mastercard Incorporated is a global payments technology company that operates a network connecting consumers, financial institutions, merchants, governments and businesses in more than 200 countries and territories. The company facilitates electronic payments and transaction processing for credit, debit and prepaid card products carrying the Mastercard brand, while also providing a range of payment-related services to issuers, acquirers and merchants. Its technology and network enable authorization, clearing and settlement of payments and support a broad set of use cases including point-of-sale, e-commerce and mobile payments.

Beyond core transaction processing, Mastercard offers a suite of value-added services such as fraud and risk management, identity and authentication tools, tokenization and digital wallet support, cross-border and commercial payment solutions, and data analytics and consulting services for merchants and financial partners.