Sarasin & Partners LLP Reduces Stake in Mastercard Incorporated $MA

Sarasin & Partners LLP cut its stake in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 0.2% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 673,122 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 1,211 shares during the period. Mastercard accounts for about 4.0% of Sarasin & Partners LLP’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 7th biggest holding. Sarasin & Partners LLP owned 0.08% of Mastercard worth $345,715,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of MA. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Mastercard by 820.0% during the 4th quarter. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. now owns 46 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares in the last quarter. Strive Financial Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Mastercard in the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Hyposwiss Advisors SA acquired a new position in Mastercard during the fourth quarter worth $29,000. Robinswood Financial LLC acquired a new position in Mastercard during the first quarter worth $25,000. Finally, Bay Harbor Wealth Management LLC raised its position in Mastercard by 54.1% during the fourth quarter. Bay Harbor Wealth Management LLC now owns 57 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Mastercard Trading Up 1.0%

MA stock opened at $576.16 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.96, a current ratio of 1.06 and a quick ratio of 1.06. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $521.01 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $515.08. Mastercard Incorporated has a one year low of $464.52 and a one year high of $601.77. The stock has a market cap of $509.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.69, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 0.72.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 30th. The credit services provider reported $5.04 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.77 by $0.27. The firm had revenue of $9.28 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.08 billion. Mastercard had a net margin of 46.34% and a return on equity of 239.99%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 14.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $4.15 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Mastercard Incorporated will post 19.78 EPS for the current year.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 7th. Investors of record on Thursday, July 9th will be paid a $0.87 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 9th. This represents a $3.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.6%. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio is 19.14%.

Key Mastercard News

Here are the key news stories impacting Mastercard this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Stablecoin initiatives strengthen Mastercard’s growth outlook: Mastercard is partnering with Borderless.xyz to test trusted cross-border stablecoin payment flows using Mastercard Crypto Credential. The company is also a founding validator for Circle’s Arc blockchain, scheduled to launch on September 16, alongside BlackRock, Visa and other financial institutions. These initiatives could create future transaction, compliance and infrastructure revenue opportunities. Mastercard and Borderless.xyz stablecoin partnership
• Positive Sentiment: Fiserv deal expands merchant reach: Mastercard’s integration with Fiserv Commerce Hub will give enterprise merchants a single connection to Mastercard services across online, mobile and in-store channels, potentially increasing payment volume and adoption of higher-margin value-added services. Mastercard expands merchant reach through Fiserv
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst sentiment remains favorable: Wall Street analysts continue to rate Mastercard positively, with Cantor Fitzgerald recently raising its price target to $695 and maintaining an overweight rating. The outlook is supported by Mastercard’s latest earnings beat, including revenue growth of 14.1% year over year. Wall Street outlook for Mastercard
• Neutral Sentiment: New Mastercard corporate cards in the UAE and Egypt and expanded premium travel benefits in Asia could support regional engagement, but the near-term earnings impact is likely limited. Mastercard corporate cards in the UAE and Egypt
• Negative Sentiment: Multiple insiders sold shares: CEO Michael Miebach sold 15,372 shares for approximately $8.8 million, while J. Mehra Sachin sold 3,000 shares and Linda Pistecchia Kirkpatrick recently sold 4,280 shares. All transactions were made under pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plans, reducing—but not eliminating—the bearish signal. Mastercard insider sale filings

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Mastercard news, CEO Michael Miebach sold 16,628 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $567.68, for a total value of $9,439,383.04. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 115,921 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $65,806,033.28. This represents a 12.54% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Sandra A. Arkell sold 200 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $540.00, for a total transaction of $108,000.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 3,322 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,793,880. This trade represents a 5.68% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 62,913 shares of company stock worth $35,769,036 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently commented on MA shares. TD Cowen lifted their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $664.00 to $667.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, July 31st. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $701.00 target price on shares of Mastercard in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Clear Str upgraded shares of Mastercard to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. Truist Financial lifted their price target on Mastercard from $554.00 to $633.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on Mastercard from $665.00 to $685.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, July 31st. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-four have issued a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Mastercard presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $661.93.

Mastercard Company 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.