Wallington Asset Management LLC Invests $251,000 in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Wallington Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 509 shares of the credit services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $251,000.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Palisade Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the first quarter worth $27,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL bought a new position in Mastercard in the second quarter valued at $34,000. Fairway Wealth LLC bought a new position in Mastercard in the second quarter valued at $35,000. Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in Mastercard by 74.0% in the third quarter. Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 87 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $43,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. Finally, VitalStone Financial LLC grew its position in Mastercard by 55.0% in the first quarter. VitalStone Financial LLC now owns 93 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $45,000 after purchasing an additional 33 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Mastercard Stock Performance

NYSE MA opened at $513.73 on Thursday. Mastercard Incorporated has a 52-week low of $359.77 and a 52-week high of $518.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.95, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a current ratio of 1.14. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $490.23 and a 200-day moving average of $464.93. The stock has a market cap of $477.57 billion, a PE ratio of 40.84, a P/E/G ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 1.10.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 31st. The credit services provider reported $3.59 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.51 by $0.08. Mastercard had a net margin of 46.45% and a return on equity of 179.78%. The business had revenue of $6.96 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.85 billion. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.3 EPS for the current year.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 8th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, October 9th will be paid a $0.66 dividend. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.51%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, October 9th. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 20.99%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Mastercard news, CMO Venkata R. Madabhushi sold 4,685 shares of Mastercard stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $493.10, for a total value of $2,310,173.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer now owns 17,118 shares in the company, valued at $8,440,885.80. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other Mastercard news, CFO J. Mehra Sachin sold 13,439 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $455.00, for a total value of $6,114,745.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 27,304 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,423,320. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CMO Venkata R. Madabhushi sold 4,685 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $493.10, for a total transaction of $2,310,173.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 17,118 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,440,885.80. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 340,809 shares of company stock worth $159,610,703 in the last quarter. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MA has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. BNP Paribas downgraded shares of Mastercard from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $470.00 target price for the company. in a research report on Tuesday, September 3rd. Oppenheimer initiated coverage on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $591.00 target price for the company. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $520.00 target price on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Wednesday, August 14th. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Mastercard from $528.00 to $538.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. Finally, Barclays increased their price target on shares of Mastercard from $536.00 to $576.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have assigned a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $525.68.

About Mastercard

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.