Piscataqua Savings Bank Cuts Position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Piscataqua Savings Bank reduced its stake in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 5.1% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 8,026 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 428 shares during the quarter. Mastercard comprises approximately 2.6% of Piscataqua Savings Bank’s holdings, making the stock its 8th largest position. Piscataqua Savings Bank’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $3,156,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Financial Connections Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Mastercard during the fourth quarter worth approximately $25,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL bought a new position in shares of Mastercard in the first quarter worth $25,000. Delta Asset Management LLC TN acquired a new position in shares of Mastercard during the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. Creative Capital Management Investments LLC bought a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the first quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, Quarry LP acquired a new stake in Mastercard in the first quarter worth about $40,000. 74.94% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Mastercard Stock Performance

Shares of MA stock opened at $417.13 on Tuesday. Mastercard Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $276.87 and a fifty-two week high of $418.60. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $401.97 and its two-hundred day moving average is $381.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.57, a current ratio of 1.13 and a quick ratio of 1.13. The firm has a market cap of $393.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.09, a PEG ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 1.10.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 27th. The credit services provider reported $2.89 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.84 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $6.30 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.18 billion. Mastercard had a return on equity of 178.10% and a net margin of 43.37%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 14.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.56 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Mastercard Incorporated will post 12.13 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 9th. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 7th were paid a $0.57 dividend. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.55%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 6th. Mastercard’s payout ratio is 21.37%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MA has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $435.00 to $450.00 in a report on Friday, July 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Mastercard from $442.00 to $510.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Mastercard from $425.00 to $440.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, July 28th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of Mastercard from $440.00 to $443.00 in a research report on Friday, July 28th. Finally, StockNews.com began coverage on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Thursday, August 17th. They set a “buy” rating for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $442.83.

Insider Activity at Mastercard

In other news, insider Hai Ling sold 3,324 shares of Mastercard stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $415.00, for a total value of $1,379,460.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 17,577 shares in the company, valued at $7,294,455. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other Mastercard news, insider Ajay Bhalla sold 4,000 shares of Mastercard stock in a transaction on Monday, September 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $413.88, for a total transaction of $1,655,520.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 6,235 shares in the company, valued at $2,580,541.80. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Hai Ling sold 3,324 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $415.00, for a total transaction of $1,379,460.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 17,577 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,294,455. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 415,267 shares of company stock worth $164,793,283. 0.13% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Mastercard Profile

Mastercard Incorporated, a technology company, provides transaction processing and other payment-related products and services in the United States and internationally. It facilitates the processing of payment transactions, including authorization, clearing, and settlement, as well as delivers other payment-related products and services.