Equities Analysts Issue Forecasts for Mastercard Q1 Earnings

Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) – Stock analysts at William Blair reduced their Q1 2025 earnings per share estimates for shares of Mastercard in a research report issued on Friday, January 31st. William Blair analyst A. Jeffrey now forecasts that the credit services provider will earn $3.53 per share for the quarter, down from their prior estimate of $3.56. William Blair currently has a “Outperform” rating on the stock. The consensus estimate for Mastercard’s current full-year earnings is $14.47 per share. William Blair also issued estimates for Mastercard’s Q4 2025 earnings at $4.12 EPS, FY2025 earnings at $15.94 EPS, Q1 2026 earnings at $4.16 EPS, Q2 2026 earnings at $4.74 EPS, Q3 2026 earnings at $4.98 EPS, Q4 2026 earnings at $4.97 EPS and FY2026 earnings at $18.83 EPS.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The credit services provider reported $3.82 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.71 by $0.11. Mastercard had a return on equity of 178.27% and a net margin of 45.26%.

Several other equities research analysts also recently commented on MA. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Mastercard from $584.00 to $650.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday. Oppenheimer reduced their target price on Mastercard from $591.00 to $588.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on Mastercard from $618.00 to $665.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on Mastercard from $590.00 to $610.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $600.00 to $660.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $595.64.

Mastercard Price Performance

MA stock opened at $555.63 on Monday. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $528.28 and a two-hundred day moving average of $501.43. The firm has a market capitalization of $509.97 billion, a PE ratio of 42.03, a P/E/G ratio of 2.17 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a current ratio of 1.29, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.36. Mastercard has a one year low of $428.86 and a one year high of $576.94.

Institutional Trading of Mastercard

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Highline Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Mastercard during the third quarter valued at about $25,000. First Personal Financial Services acquired a new position in Mastercard in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $39,000. FSA Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Mastercard in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $54,000. Raelipskie Partnership lifted its position in shares of Mastercard by 120.0% in the 3rd quarter. Raelipskie Partnership now owns 110 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $54,000 after acquiring an additional 60 shares during the period. Finally, Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $55,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

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

Mastercard Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 7th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 9th will be given a dividend of $0.76 per share. This is a positive change from Mastercard’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.66. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 10th. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.55%. Mastercard’s payout ratio is currently 23.00%.

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.