Temasek Holdings Private Ltd Reduces Stock Holdings in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Temasek Holdings Private Ltd trimmed its stake in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 1.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,771,574 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 33,980 shares during the period. Mastercard accounts for 5.8% of Temasek Holdings Private Ltd’s portfolio, making the stock its 3rd largest position. Temasek Holdings Private Ltd owned 0.30% of Mastercard worth $1,459,428,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 77,179,138 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $40,640,219,000 after purchasing an additional 377,302 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC grew its stake in Mastercard by 4.3% during the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 22,267,937 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $11,725,627,000 after buying an additional 912,856 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in Mastercard by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 18,657,792 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $9,800,202,000 after buying an additional 282,739 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Mastercard during the 4th quarter valued at about $6,022,224,000. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP raised its stake in Mastercard by 9.1% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 9,760,740 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $5,139,713,000 after buying an additional 817,836 shares during the last quarter. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on MA shares. DZ Bank upgraded Mastercard from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $620.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Macquarie dropped their target price on shares of Mastercard from $645.00 to $610.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Mastercard from $595.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $572.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Mastercard from $590.00 to $610.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $606.25.

Insider Activity at Mastercard

In other Mastercard news, insider Sandra A. Arkell sold 150 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $569.45, for a total transaction of $85,417.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 3,555 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,024,394.75. This represents a 4.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Edward Grunde Mclaughlin sold 7,132 shares of Mastercard stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $534.68, for a total transaction of $3,813,337.76. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 34,524 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,459,292.32. This trade represents a 17.12% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 23,207 shares of company stock worth $12,664,529 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Mastercard Stock Performance

MA opened at $582.97 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $535.67 and a 200 day moving average price of $535.63. Mastercard Incorporated has a 1 year low of $428.86 and a 1 year high of $584.29. The stock has a market cap of $531.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 41.97, a P/E/G ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 1.03.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The credit services provider reported $3.73 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.57 by $0.16. Mastercard had a net margin of 45.71% and a return on equity of 188.47%. The business had revenue of $7.25 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.12 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $3.31 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 14.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 earnings per share for the current year.

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.