Jefferies Financial Group Inc. Acquires 172,264 Shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 3,716.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 176,899 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 172,264 shares during the period. Mastercard comprises 0.5% of Jefferies Financial Group Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 13th biggest position. Jefferies Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $93,150,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Whalerock Point Partners LLC grew its stake in Mastercard by 1.3% in the fourth quarter. Whalerock Point Partners LLC now owns 14,678 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $7,729,000 after purchasing an additional 185 shares in the last quarter. Cardano Risk Management B.V. lifted its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 2.7% in the 4th quarter. Cardano Risk Management B.V. now owns 368,690 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $194,141,000 after buying an additional 9,611 shares during the period. Dock Street Asset Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Mastercard by 4.5% during the 4th quarter. Dock Street Asset Management Inc. now owns 68,237 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $35,932,000 after buying an additional 2,931 shares in the last quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC increased its stake in shares of Mastercard by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 71,862 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $37,841,000 after buying an additional 1,194 shares during the period. Finally, Courier Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Mastercard in the fourth quarter valued at about $3,867,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MA has been the topic of a number of research reports. Evercore ISI assumed coverage on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. They set an “in-line” rating and a $550.00 target price on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $585.00 to $625.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on Mastercard from $618.00 to $665.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report 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. Finally, Piper Sandler reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $635.00 price target (up from $591.00) on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Six investment 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 stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $606.25.

Insider Activity

In other Mastercard news, insider Edward Grunde Mclaughlin sold 7,132 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $534.68, for a total value of $3,813,337.76. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 34,524 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,459,292.32. This represents a 17.12 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 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 value of $8,678,774.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 84,871 shares in the company, valued at $46,692,629.36. This trade represents a 15.67 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Mastercard Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MA opened at $568.38 on Friday. Mastercard Incorporated has a 52 week low of $428.86 and a 52 week high of $582.23. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $532.17 and its 200 day moving average price is $533.23. The company has a quick ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68. The firm has a market cap of $518.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.92, a P/E/G ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.06.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The credit services provider reported $3.73 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 business had revenue of $7.25 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.12 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.31 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 earnings per share for the current year.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 9th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 9th were paid a dividend of $0.76 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, April 9th. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.53%. Mastercard’s 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.