Mastercard Incorporated $MA Shares Sold by Adams Diversified Equity Fund Inc.

Adams Diversified Equity Fund Inc. lowered its stake in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 19.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 46,162 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 11,400 shares during the quarter. Adams Diversified Equity Fund Inc.’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $26,353,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Riggs Asset Managment Co. Inc. boosted its position in Mastercard by 20.0% during the 2nd quarter. Riggs Asset Managment Co. Inc. now owns 108 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $61,000 after purchasing an additional 18 shares during the period. Affinity Capital Advisors LLC boosted its position in Mastercard by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Affinity Capital Advisors LLC now owns 2,939 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $1,678,000 after purchasing an additional 19 shares during the period. Abacus Planning Group Inc. boosted its position in Mastercard by 3.3% during the 4th quarter. Abacus Planning Group Inc. now owns 590 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $337,000 after purchasing an additional 19 shares during the period. Thomasville National Bank boosted its position in Mastercard by 4.1% during the 4th quarter. Thomasville National Bank now owns 479 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $273,000 after purchasing an additional 19 shares during the period. Finally, Castle Rock Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in Mastercard by 2.8% during the 4th quarter. Castle Rock Wealth Management LLC now owns 695 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $387,000 after purchasing an additional 19 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Mastercard Stock Up 0.6%

MA opened at $489.36 on Friday. Mastercard Incorporated has a one year low of $464.52 and a one year high of $601.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.56, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 0.98. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $499.31 and its 200-day moving average is $523.57. The company has a market capitalization of $432.39 billion, a PE ratio of 28.32, a P/E/G ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 0.74.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The credit services provider reported $4.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.41 by $0.19. The business had revenue of $8.40 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.26 billion. Mastercard had a return on equity of 212.96% and a net margin of 45.88%.The company’s quarterly revenue was up 15.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $3.73 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Mastercard Incorporated will post 19.6 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently issued reports on MA. BMO Capital Markets began coverage on Mastercard in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. They set an “outperform” rating and a $605.00 price objective for the company. Evercore reaffirmed a “negative” rating on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Tuesday, March 17th. BNP Paribas Exane raised Mastercard from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $600.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 19th. Raymond James Financial set a $609.00 target price on Mastercard in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Truist Financial cut their target price on Mastercard from $590.00 to $561.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, May 12th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have issued a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Mastercard has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $656.04.

Key Stories Impacting Mastercard

Here are the key news stories impacting Mastercard this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Mastercard launched Agent Pay for Machines (AP4M), a new payment framework designed to let AI agents and autonomous machines make secure transactions, send micropayments, and settle across multiple payment types. The initiative is backed by more than 30 industry participants and includes crypto and fintech partners, which could open a new growth avenue in AI-powered commerce. Article: Mastercard Introduces Agent Pay for Machines to Enable Autonomous AI Transactions
• Positive Sentiment: A U.S. federal judge gave preliminary approval to Mastercard’s revised $38 billion swipe-fee settlement, moving a decades-long antitrust case closer to resolution. Investors may view this as reducing legal overhang, even though merchants remain unhappy and the final outcome is still pending. Article: Mastercard Incorporated (MA) gains 2% Over Preliminary Judicial Approval of $38 billion Swipe-Fee Settlement
• Neutral Sentiment: Mastercard also announced leadership changes, including Ling Hai moving into the CFO role and Sachin Mehra taking on a newly created Chief Business Officer position. This is more of a governance update than an immediate operating catalyst. Article: Mastercard announces leadership changes
• Neutral Sentiment: Cuba’s central bank said it will suspend all Visa and Mastercard transactions there after a processing partnership collapsed under U.S. sanctions pressure. The direct financial impact appears limited, but it highlights ongoing geopolitical and payment-network disruptions. Article: Cuba’s Central Bank to Suspend all Visa and Mastercard Transactions
• Negative Sentiment: Recent commentary on Mastercard’s valuation notes that the stock has been under pressure over the past months and remains below key moving averages, suggesting investors are still cautious despite the positive news flow. Article: A Look At Mastercard (MA) Valuation After Recent Share Price Weakness

Mastercard Company Profile

Mastercard Incorporated is a global payments technology company that operates a network connecting consumers, financial institutions, merchants, governments and businesses in more than 200 countries and territories. The company facilitates electronic payments and transaction processing for credit, debit and prepaid card products carrying the Mastercard brand, while also providing a range of payment-related services to issuers, acquirers and merchants. Its technology and network enable authorization, clearing and settlement of payments and support a broad set of use cases including point-of-sale, e-commerce and mobile payments.

Beyond core transaction processing, Mastercard offers a suite of value-added services such as fraud and risk management, identity and authentication tools, tokenization and digital wallet support, cross-border and commercial payment solutions, and data analytics and consulting services for merchants and financial partners.