Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) Shares Sold by Freedom Investment Management Inc.

Freedom Investment Management Inc. reduced its position in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 3.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,797 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 226 shares during the period. Freedom Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $3,053,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in MA. NewSquare Capital LLC bought a new position in Mastercard during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Marshall Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Mastercard during the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Mastercard in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Truvestments Capital LLC raised its stake in Mastercard by 62.5% during the 4th quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC now owns 65 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CoreFirst Bank & Trust acquired a new stake in Mastercard in the fourth quarter worth about $37,000. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on MA shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Mastercard from $590.00 to $610.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. KeyCorp upped their price target on Mastercard from $600.00 to $630.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $584.00 to $650.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Oppenheimer lowered their price target on Mastercard from $591.00 to $588.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Finally, Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating and set a $635.00 price objective (up from $591.00) on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $607.96.

Insider Activity at Mastercard

In other news, insider Edward Grunde Mclaughlin sold 7,132 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $534.68, for a total value of $3,813,337.76. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 34,524 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $18,459,292.32. The trade was a 17.12 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Michael Miebach sold 15,775 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $550.16, for a total value of $8,678,774.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 84,871 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $46,692,629.36. This represents a 15.67 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Mastercard Price Performance

NYSE:MA opened at $517.46 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 1.03. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $538.81 and a 200 day moving average price of $528.64. Mastercard Incorporated has a one year low of $428.86 and a one year high of $582.23. The stock has a market cap of $471.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.25, a PEG ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.06.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The credit services provider reported $3.82 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.71 by $0.11. Mastercard had a return on equity of 188.47% and a net margin of 45.71%. Analysts anticipate that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 earnings per share for the current year.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 9th will be given a dividend of $0.76 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 9th. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.59%. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 21.89%.

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.