Bridger Management LLC Takes Position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Bridger Management LLC purchased a new stake in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor purchased 2,400 shares of the credit services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,264,000. Mastercard accounts for 0.7% of Bridger Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 24th largest position.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. NewSquare Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Mastercard during the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Mastercard during the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. Marshall Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Mastercard in the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. Navigoe LLC acquired a new position in shares of Mastercard in the 4th quarter valued at about $33,000. Finally, Truvestments Capital LLC lifted its position in shares of Mastercard by 62.5% in the fourth quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC now owns 65 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Mastercard

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Susquehanna upped their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $605.00 to $670.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. William Blair reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Monness Crespi & Hardt cut Mastercard from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. DZ Bank raised Mastercard from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $620.00 price target for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, Barclays boosted their price target on Mastercard from $595.00 to $650.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $606.25.

Mastercard Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE MA opened at $560.97 on Tuesday. Mastercard Incorporated has a 12 month low of $428.86 and a 12 month high of $582.23. The company has a market cap of $511.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.39, a P/E/G ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.06. The business’s 50 day moving average is $532.34 and its two-hundred day moving average is $531.92. The company has a quick ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The credit services provider reported $3.73 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.57 by $0.16. Mastercard had a net margin of 45.71% and a return on equity of 188.47%. The business had revenue of $7.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.12 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $3.31 earnings per share. Mastercard’s revenue was up 14.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts expect that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 EPS for the current year.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 9th will be given a dividend of $0.76 per share. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.54%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 9th. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio is currently 21.32%.

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.