Blue Trust Inc. Boosts Holdings in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Blue Trust Inc. boosted its position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 17.3% during the first quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 6,736 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after buying an additional 992 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc.’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $3,692,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its holdings in Mastercard by 42.3% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 6,824 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $3,594,000 after acquiring an additional 2,028 shares during the period. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA acquired a new stake in Mastercard in the fourth quarter valued at $83,644,000. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG lifted its holdings in Mastercard by 11.8% in the fourth quarter. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG now owns 70,472 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $37,108,000 after acquiring an additional 7,452 shares during the period. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust acquired a new stake in Mastercard in the fourth quarter valued at $89,000. Finally, Atlas Legacy Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Mastercard in the fourth quarter valued at $749,000. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MA has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. UBS Group raised their target price on Mastercard from $660.00 to $670.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 3rd. Tigress Financial reissued a “strong-buy” rating on shares of Mastercard in a report on Monday, March 10th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Mastercard from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, June 14th. Truist Financial started coverage on Mastercard in a research note on Monday, June 2nd. They set a “buy” rating and a $640.00 price target for the company. Finally, Evercore ISI initiated coverage on Mastercard in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. They set an “in-line” rating and a $550.00 price target for the company. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $610.00.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Mastercard news, insider Linda Pistecchia Kirkpatrick sold 959 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $572.86, for a total value of $549,372.74. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 25,540 shares in the company, valued at $14,630,844.40. This represents a 3.62% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Sandra A. Arkell sold 150 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $569.45, for a total value of $85,417.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 3,555 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,024,394.75. This represents a 4.05% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 40,513 shares of company stock worth $23,166,463 in the last 90 days. 0.09% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Mastercard Stock Down 5.4%

Shares of NYSE:MA opened at $538.45 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.81, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a current ratio of 1.11. Mastercard Incorporated has a 1 year low of $428.86 and a 1 year high of $594.71. The stock has a market capitalization of $490.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.76, a PEG ratio of 2.48 and a beta of 1.05. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $558.50 and a 200-day simple moving average of $544.42.

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 analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.57 by $0.16. Mastercard had a return on equity of 196.87% and a net margin of 45.21%. The business had revenue of $7.25 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.12 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $3.31 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 earnings per share for the current 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.