Mastercard (NYSE:MA) Stock Price Up 0.3%

Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)’s stock price was up 0.3% on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $497.26 and last traded at $495.25. Approximately 710,868 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 71% from the average daily volume of 2,453,498 shares. The stock had previously closed at $493.80.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on shares of Mastercard from $500.00 to $526.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. Barclays boosted their price objective on Mastercard from $530.00 to $536.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, August 5th. Argus raised Mastercard to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Evercore ISI reduced their price target on Mastercard from $540.00 to $525.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, June 25th. Finally, Citigroup upped their price objective on Mastercard from $528.00 to $538.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty have assigned a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $517.22.

Mastercard Stock Up 0.7 %

The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $471.70 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $461.86. The company has a current ratio of 1.14, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.95. The company has a market capitalization of $462.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.96 and a beta of 1.10.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 31st. The credit services provider reported $3.59 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.51 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $6.96 billion for 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%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.29 EPS for the current year.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CMO Venkata R. Madabhushi sold 4,685 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 sale, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 17,118 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,440,885.80. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, CMO Venkata R. Madabhushi sold 4,685 shares of Mastercard stock in a transaction on Friday, September 13th. The stock was 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 directly owns 17,118 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,440,885.80. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CFO J. Mehra Sachin sold 13,439 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 5th. The stock was 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 in the company, valued at approximately $12,423,320. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 340,809 shares of company stock valued at $159,610,703. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. VitalStone Financial LLC increased its position in shares of Mastercard by 300.0% in 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 position in shares of Mastercard during the first quarter worth $27,000. Palisade Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in Mastercard in the first quarter valued at $27,000. Scarborough Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Mastercard in the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. Finally, Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Mastercard in the fourth quarter valued at $30,000. 97.28% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.