First Community Trust NA Sells 45 Shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

First Community Trust NA lowered its stake in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 38.5% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 72 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 45 shares during the quarter. First Community Trust NA’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $36,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 0.4% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 75,584,606 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $36,399,279,000 after buying an additional 330,872 shares in the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors grew its stake in shares of Mastercard by 0.3% during the 1st quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 13,651,904 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $6,574,347,000 after acquiring an additional 43,881 shares in the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its stake in shares of Mastercard by 1.4% during the 2nd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 5,082,729 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $2,241,297,000 after acquiring an additional 71,569 shares in the last quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board lifted its position in shares of Mastercard by 2.7% in the second quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 4,327,168 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $1,908,973,000 after purchasing an additional 113,238 shares in the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. boosted its holdings in Mastercard by 0.9% during the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 4,250,760 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $1,875,266,000 after purchasing an additional 38,380 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Mastercard Price Performance

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 company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.95, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a current ratio of 1.14. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $474.05 and its 200 day simple moving average is $462.24. The firm has a market cap of $460.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.40, a P/E/G ratio of 1.96 and a beta of 1.10.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 31st. The credit services provider reported $3.59 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.51 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $6.96 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.85 billion. Mastercard had a return on equity of 179.78% and a net margin of 46.45%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.29 earnings per share for the current 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. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.53%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, October 9th. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 20.99%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Mastercard news, CMO Venkata R. Madabhushi sold 4,685 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $493.10, for a total transaction of $2,310,173.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 17,118 shares in the company, valued at $8,440,885.80. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, major shareholder Foundation Mastercard sold 119,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on 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 sale, the insider now 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, CMO Venkata R. Madabhushi sold 4,685 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $493.10, for a total value of $2,310,173.50. Following the sale, the chief marketing officer now owns 17,118 shares in the company, valued at $8,440,885.80. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 340,809 shares of company stock worth $159,610,703. Corporate insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have issued reports on MA. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target 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. Piper Sandler upped their target price on Mastercard from $531.00 to $536.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Citigroup raised their price target on Mastercard from $528.00 to $538.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. KeyCorp upped their price objective on Mastercard from $490.00 to $515.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Finally, Barclays increased their price objective on Mastercard from $530.00 to $536.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, August 5th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty have issued a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $517.22.

Mastercard Company 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.