Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) Receives Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) have received a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty-seven brokerages that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, twenty-three have given a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price target among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $562.76.

Several research firms recently weighed in on MA. BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on shares of Mastercard from $550.00 to $565.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. Citigroup raised their price objective on Mastercard from $566.00 to $572.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. William Blair restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Monday, November 25th. Macquarie lifted their price target on shares of Mastercard from $505.00 to $565.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of Mastercard from $593.00 to $580.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 1st.

Mastercard Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE MA opened at $521.36 on Friday. Mastercard has a 12 month low of $416.53 and a 12 month high of $537.70. The company has a market cap of $478.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.44, a P/E/G ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 1.10. The business’s 50 day moving average is $523.58 and its two-hundred day moving average is $489.72. The company has a quick ratio of 1.29, a current ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.36.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The credit services provider reported $3.89 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.73 by $0.16. The firm had revenue of $7.37 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.27 billion. Mastercard had a net margin of 45.26% and a return on equity of 178.27%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 12.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $3.39 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Mastercard will post 14.47 EPS for the current year.

Mastercard Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 7th. Investors of record on Friday, January 10th will be issued a $0.76 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 10th. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.58%. This is a positive change from Mastercard’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.66. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 23.00%.

Mastercard declared that its board has initiated a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, December 17th that permits the company to buyback $12.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the credit services provider to buy up to 2.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Mastercard

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Foster & Motley Inc. grew its position in shares of Mastercard by 16.3% during the 2nd quarter. Foster & Motley Inc. now owns 1,186 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $523,000 after buying an additional 166 shares during the period. New York Life Investment Management LLC raised its position in shares of Mastercard by 0.6% during the 2nd quarter. New York Life Investment Management LLC now owns 125,770 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $55,485,000 after acquiring an additional 688 shares during the last quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Mastercard by 4.0% in the 2nd quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 47,635 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $21,015,000 after purchasing an additional 1,842 shares during the period. North Star Asset Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Mastercard by 1.6% in the 2nd quarter. North Star Asset Management Inc. now owns 41,080 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $18,123,000 after purchasing an additional 630 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Candriam S.C.A. grew its stake in shares of Mastercard by 4.9% during the second quarter. Candriam S.C.A. now owns 413,193 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $182,276,000 after purchasing an additional 19,480 shares during the period. 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.