Tufton Capital Management Boosts Position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Tufton Capital Management lifted its stake in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 4.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 604 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 26 shares during the period. Tufton Capital Management’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $258,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of MA. Bornite Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in Mastercard in the 1st quarter valued at about $21,442,000. United Bank grew its position in Mastercard by 34.5% in the 1st quarter. United Bank now owns 6,007 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $2,147,000 after acquiring an additional 1,541 shares in the last quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp grew its position in Mastercard by 30.1% in the 1st quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 272,358 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $97,335,000 after acquiring an additional 63,040 shares in the last quarter. First Western Trust Bank acquired a new position in Mastercard in the 1st quarter valued at about $1,168,000. Finally, Bridgewater Associates LP acquired a new position in Mastercard in the 1st quarter valued at about $12,926,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Mastercard

In other news, major shareholder Foundation Mastercard sold 200 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $487.25, for a total value of $97,450.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 97,543,308 shares in the company, valued at approximately $47,527,976,823. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Mastercard news, CEO Michael Miebach sold 7,851 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $475.92, for a total transaction of $3,736,447.92. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 47,640 shares in the company, valued at approximately $22,672,828.80. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, major shareholder Foundation Mastercard sold 200 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $487.25, for a total value of $97,450.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 97,543,308 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $47,527,976,823. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 41,728 shares of company stock worth $19,479,753 in the last three months. 0.13% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Mastercard Price Performance

Mastercard stock traded down $1.07 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $459.09. The stock had a trading volume of 515,422 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,385,876. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.06, a current ratio of 1.17 and a quick ratio of 1.17. The stock has a market capitalization of $428.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.89, a PEG ratio of 1.74 and a beta of 1.08. Mastercard Incorporated has a 1-year low of $357.85 and a 1-year high of $490.00. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $471.83 and its two-hundred day moving average is $433.21.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 31st. The credit services provider reported $3.18 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.08 by $0.10. Mastercard had a return on equity of 191.22% and a net margin of 44.60%. The business had revenue of $6.55 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.46 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.65 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 9th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 9th will be issued a $0.66 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 8th. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.58%. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 22.32%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MA has been the subject of several research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Mastercard from $504.00 to $520.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on Mastercard from $525.00 to $545.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday. Oppenheimer reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $510.00 price objective on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Thursday, February 1st. Mizuho reissued a “buy” rating and set a $480.00 price objective on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Wednesday, March 27th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on Mastercard from $432.00 to $499.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 1st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $490.23.

Mastercard 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.