Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) Shares Sold by Armstrong Henry H Associates Inc.

Armstrong Henry H Associates Inc. lowered its position in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 0.3% during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 14,502 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 50 shares during the period. Mastercard comprises about 0.7% of Armstrong Henry H Associates Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 13th largest position. Armstrong Henry H Associates Inc.’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $7,161,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Trust Co of the South acquired a new stake in shares of Mastercard in the third quarter valued at approximately $448,000. Trust Co. of Toledo NA OH raised its position in Mastercard by 11.5% in the 3rd quarter. Trust Co. of Toledo NA OH now owns 11,101 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $5,482,000 after purchasing an additional 1,144 shares during the last quarter. Abacus Planning Group Inc. purchased a new stake in Mastercard in the 3rd quarter valued at $220,000. Ables Iannone Moore & Associates Inc. acquired a new stake in Mastercard during the 3rd quarter worth $203,000. Finally, IMPACTfolio LLC purchased a new position in Mastercard during the 3rd quarter worth $212,000. 97.28% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Mastercard

In other Mastercard news, major shareholder Foundation Mastercard sold 119,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $468.46, for a total transaction of $55,746,740.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 92,033,308 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $43,113,923,465.68. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other Mastercard news, major shareholder Foundation Mastercard sold 119,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $468.46, for a total transaction of $55,746,740.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 92,033,308 shares in the company, valued at approximately $43,113,923,465.68. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO J. Mehra Sachin sold 13,439 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $455.00, for a total value of $6,114,745.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 27,304 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,423,320. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 340,809 shares of company stock worth $159,610,703. 0.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently commented on MA. William Blair raised shares of Mastercard to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Bank of America upped their price objective on Mastercard from $480.00 to $509.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 17th. Oppenheimer initiated coverage on Mastercard in a research note on Tuesday. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $591.00 target price on the stock. Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $528.00 to $538.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $500.00 to $526.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty have given a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Mastercard has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $517.22.

Mastercard Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE MA opened at $495.67 on Thursday. Mastercard Incorporated has a 52-week low of $359.77 and a 52-week high of $501.80. The stock has a market capitalization of $460.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.40, a PEG ratio of 1.96 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.95. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $474.05 and its 200 day simple moving average is $462.24.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The credit services provider reported $3.59 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.51 by $0.08. Mastercard had a return on equity of 179.78% and a net margin of 46.45%. The firm had revenue of $6.96 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.85 billion. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.29 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 8th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, October 9th will be issued a dividend of $0.66 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, October 9th. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.53%. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio is currently 20.99%.

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.