ARS Wealth Advisors Group LLC Decreases Stock Holdings in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

ARS Wealth Advisors Group LLC decreased its holdings in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 2.7% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 29,237 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 825 shares during the quarter. Mastercard comprises about 2.3% of ARS Wealth Advisors Group LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 18th largest position. ARS Wealth Advisors Group LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $16,025,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Miracle Mile Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Mastercard by 10.4% in the first quarter. Miracle Mile Advisors LLC now owns 20,132 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $11,035,000 after acquiring an additional 1,904 shares during the period. RDA Financial Network raised its stake in shares of Mastercard by 5.4% in the first quarter. RDA Financial Network now owns 3,579 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $1,962,000 after acquiring an additional 183 shares during the period. Patriot Financial Group Insurance Agency LLC raised its stake in shares of Mastercard by 21.1% in the first quarter. Patriot Financial Group Insurance Agency LLC now owns 3,787 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $2,076,000 after acquiring an additional 660 shares during the period. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Mastercard by 4.6% in the first quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 3,603 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $1,975,000 after acquiring an additional 160 shares during the period. Finally, Charter Oak Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Mastercard by 11.0% in the first quarter. Charter Oak Capital Management LLC now owns 1,114 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $611,000 after acquiring an additional 110 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Sandra A. Arkell sold 150 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $569.45, for a total value of $85,417.50. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 3,555 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,024,394.75. This trade represents a 4.05% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Michael Miebach sold 15,775 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $550.16, for a total transaction of $8,678,774.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 84,871 shares in the company, 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. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 37,258 shares of company stock worth $20,885,067. Corporate insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MA has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Truist Financial initiated coverage on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Monday, June 2nd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $640.00 target price on the stock. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Mastercard from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday. Monness Crespi & Hardt downgraded shares of Mastercard from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. KeyCorp raised their price target on shares of Mastercard from $630.00 to $635.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Evercore ISI assumed coverage on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. They issued an “in-line” rating and a $550.00 price target on the stock. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $610.00.

Mastercard Stock Up 0.8%

Shares of Mastercard stock opened at $590.03 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. Mastercard Incorporated has a 1 year low of $428.86 and a 1 year high of $591.16. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $547.49 and its two-hundred day moving average is $541.93. The stock has a market cap of $537.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.48, a PEG ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.05.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The credit services provider reported $3.73 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.57 by $0.16. Mastercard had a net margin of 45.71% and a return on equity of 188.47%. The company had revenue of $7.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.12 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $3.31 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 14.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.