Stephens Inc. AR Has $51.19 Million Position in Mastercard Incorporated $MA

Stephens Inc. AR raised its position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 0.6% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 91,099 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after buying an additional 556 shares during the quarter. Mastercard accounts for 0.7% of Stephens Inc. AR’s holdings, making the stock its 24th biggest holding. Stephens Inc. AR’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $51,192,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Mountain Capital Investment Advisors Inc. boosted its position in shares of Mastercard by 25.4% in the second quarter. Mountain Capital Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 513 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $290,000 after acquiring an additional 104 shares during the period. Swan Global Investments LLC raised its stake in Mastercard by 21.9% in the 2nd quarter. Swan Global Investments LLC now owns 596 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $335,000 after purchasing an additional 107 shares in the last quarter. Calamos Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Mastercard by 0.9% in the 2nd quarter. Calamos Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,473 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $2,514,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares in the last quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC boosted its holdings in Mastercard by 3.8% in the 2nd quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 1,656 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $930,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares during the period. Finally, Crux Wealth Advisors grew its position in shares of Mastercard by 21.7% during the 2nd quarter. Crux Wealth Advisors now owns 2,353 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $1,322,000 after purchasing an additional 420 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Mastercard

In other news, CFO J. Mehra Sachin sold 17,263 shares of the business’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 sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 31,234 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,459,294. The trade was a 35.60% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

Mastercard Stock Performance

NYSE:MA opened at $561.42 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization 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 company has a quick ratio of 1.16, a current ratio of 1.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.41. Mastercard Incorporated has a twelve month low of $465.59 and a twelve month high of $601.77. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $580.22 and its 200 day simple moving average is $563.50.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 31st. The credit services provider reported $4.15 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.05 by $0.10. Mastercard had a net margin of 44.93% and a return on equity of 200.01%. The business had revenue of $8.13 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.95 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.50 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 16.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts anticipate that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on MA. KeyCorp lifted their price target on shares of Mastercard from $635.00 to $660.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Mastercard from $625.00 to $650.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 1st. TD Cowen reissued a “buy” rating and set a $645.00 target price on shares of Mastercard in a report on Monday, August 11th. Wolfe Research set a $655.00 price objective on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Monday, June 23rd. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-five have given a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $634.04.

About Mastercard

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.