Mastercard Incorporated $MA Stock: Ninety One North America Inc. Lowers Position

Ninety One North America Inc. lessened its holdings in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 39.7% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 64,070 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 42,119 shares during the quarter. Mastercard comprises 1.8% of Ninety One North America Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 21st biggest position. Ninety One North America Inc.’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $35,333,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. State Street Corp boosted its position in shares of Mastercard by 1.3% during the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 36,964,305 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $18,984,867,000 after acquiring an additional 486,283 shares during the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC increased its position in shares of Mastercard by 10.4% in the first quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 5,123,041 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $2,559,779,000 after purchasing an additional 480,725 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position in shares of Mastercard by 1.0% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 4,225,359 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $2,111,216,000 after purchasing an additional 42,871 shares during the last quarter. Amundi increased its position in shares of Mastercard by 5.8% in the second quarter. Amundi now owns 3,626,416 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $1,862,527,000 after purchasing an additional 199,424 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership raised its stake in Mastercard by 17.8% in the first quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 3,666,018 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $1,831,763,000 after purchasing an additional 554,366 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Mastercard

In other Mastercard news, Director Julius Genachowski sold 371 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, October 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $585.01, for a total value of $217,038.71. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 8,607 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,035,181.07. The trade was a 4.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Sachin Mehra sold 7,444 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $577.13, for a total transaction of $4,296,155.72. Following the sale, the insider owned 40,916 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $23,613,851.08. The trade was a 15.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. 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 sold a total of 68,359 shares of company stock worth $39,290,046 in the last quarter. 0.09% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Mastercard Price Performance

MA traded up $11.77 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $615.01. The stock had a trading volume of 1,612,228 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,502,078. The company has a market cap of $538.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 0.76. The business has a fifty day moving average of $574.08 and a 200 day moving average of $533.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.96, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a current ratio of 1.06. Mastercard Incorporated has a 1 year low of $464.52 and a 1 year high of $616.27.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The credit services provider reported $5.04 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.77 by $0.27. The business had revenue of $9.28 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.08 billion. Mastercard had a net margin of 46.34% and a return on equity of 239.99%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 14.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $4.15 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Mastercard Incorporated will post 19.90 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 9th. Investors of record on Friday, October 9th will be issued a dividend of $0.87 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 9th. This represents a $3.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.6%. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 19.14%.

Mastercard News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Mastercard this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Stablecoin platform expands Mastercard’s growth opportunity: Mastercard and BVNK launched the Mastercard Global Money Platform, a single API that enables banks, fintechs and businesses to manage fiat currencies and stablecoins. The product is the first major integration since Mastercard acquired BVNK in August and could increase Mastercard’s role in cross-border payments and digital-asset settlement. Mastercard and BVNK launch Global Money Platform
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts remain bullish: Wall Street’s consensus rating is “Moderate Buy,” with a consensus price target of $681.56. Recent target increases from UBS, Daiwa Securities and Truist reinforce expectations for further upside, supporting demand for MA shares. Wall Street’s bullish views on Mastercard
• Positive Sentiment: Momentum and earnings expectations are supportive: Technical coverage says Mastercard has moved above key buy points after an extended winning streak, while analysts anticipate double-digit earnings growth in the next report. Its prior quarter included EPS and revenue beats, with revenue up 14.1% year over year. Mastercard’s winning streak and chart outlook
• Positive Sentiment: Payments ecosystem continues to broaden: Mastercard is expanding into crypto-linked cards in Mexico, cybersecurity services in Africa and fleet payments across Asia-Pacific with WEX. These initiatives could support long-term transaction growth in emerging and commercial markets. Mastercard expands in Africa and Asia-Pacific
• Neutral Sentiment: Director Julius Genachowski sold shares under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan. The transactions modestly reduced his holdings but are less significant as an indication of outlook because they were scheduled in advance. Mastercard director stock sale

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have commented on MA shares. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of Mastercard from $700.00 to $735.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Piper Sandler raised their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $597.00 to $710.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, July 31st. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $642.00 to $696.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, August 31st. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $665.00 price objective on shares of Mastercard in a report on Thursday. Finally, Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $660.00 to $710.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, October 9th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty have given a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $682.66.

Mastercard Profile

Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE: MA) is a global payments technology company that operates a network connecting consumers, financial institutions, merchants, governments and businesses. The company facilitates the authorization, clearing and settlement of electronic payment transactions, while generally not issuing cards or extending credit itself. Its network supports payments made in stores, online and through mobile devices.

Mastercard’s products and services include consumer and commercial payment cards, digital payment solutions, payment processing, fraud prevention, cybersecurity, identity verification, data and analytics, and open banking tools.