5 Stocks to Buy When Everyone is Selling

2. Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 144 

Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) is a technology firm with core interests in transaction processing services. Although the short-term fortunes of the firm are linked to the health of the economy, the long-term catalysts for the stock outweigh the near-term concerns. The firm is responsible for nearly a quarter of the credit card network purchase volume. Since it is not a lender, it is not exposed to loan delinquencies during recessions either. The firm has a long runway of growth in emerging markets as well. 

On May 17, Goldman Sachs analyst Will Nance initiated coverage of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) stock with a Buy rating and a price target of $460, backing the firm to continue to deliver “best-in-class” earnings supported by secular tailwinds and strong operating leverage.

Among the hedge funds being tracked by Insider Monkey, Virginia-based investment firm Akre Capital Management is a leading shareholder in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA), with 5.8 million shares worth more than $2 billion. 

In its Q1 2022 investor letter, Ensemble Capital, an asset management firm, highlighted a few stocks and Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) was one of them. Here is what the fund said:

“Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) (7.6% weight in the Fund): This company literally earns a percent based fee on dollars spent. When inflation increases the prices of goods across the economy, Mastercard’s revenue increases along with inflation. Thus, Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) in some respects is perfectly hedged against inflation with their revenue accelerating automatically when inflation surges.”