Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

Shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) have been given an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the twenty-seven ratings firms that are covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nineteen have issued a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 12-month price objective among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $517.22.

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. KeyCorp upped their price target on shares of Mastercard from $490.00 to $515.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. BMO Capital Markets restated an “outperform” rating and set a $520.00 target price on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Wednesday, August 14th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on Mastercard from $500.00 to $526.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. Susquehanna upped their price objective on Mastercard from $535.00 to $540.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. Finally, Compass Point initiated coverage on Mastercard in a research note on Wednesday, September 4th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $525.00 price objective for the company.

Insider Activity at Mastercard

In other news, major shareholder Foundation Mastercard sold 119,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $468.46, for a total transaction of $55,746,740.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 92,033,308 shares in the company, valued at $43,113,923,465.68. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other Mastercard news, major shareholder Foundation Mastercard sold 119,000 shares of Mastercard stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $468.46, for a total value of $55,746,740.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 92,033,308 shares in the company, valued at $43,113,923,465.68. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CMO Venkata R. Madabhushi sold 4,685 shares of the 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 sale, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 17,118 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,440,885.80. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 340,809 shares of company stock worth $159,610,703 over the last three months. 0.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Mastercard

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. VitalStone Financial LLC grew its stake in Mastercard by 300.0% during the 4th quarter. VitalStone Financial LLC now owns 60 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares during the last quarter. Westend Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the first quarter worth about $27,000. Palisade Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in Mastercard in the first quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Scarborough Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Mastercard in the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Finally, Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Mastercard during the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Mastercard Stock Up 0.5 %

MA opened at $496.19 on Friday. Mastercard has a 52 week low of $359.77 and a 52 week high of $501.80. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.95. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $472.79 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $462.01. The company has a market capitalization of $461.27 billion, a PE ratio of 39.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.96 and a beta of 1.10.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The credit services provider reported $3.59 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.51 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $6.96 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.85 billion. Mastercard had a return on equity of 179.78% and a net margin of 46.45%. Analysts forecast that Mastercard will post 14.29 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 8th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, October 9th will be given a dividend of $0.66 per share. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.53%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, October 9th. Mastercard’s payout ratio is 20.99%.

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.