Mastercard (NYSE:MA) Price Target Raised to $650.00

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) had its price target lifted by Royal Bank of Canada from $572.00 to $650.00 in a report published on Friday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have an outperform rating on the credit services provider’s stock.

A number of other brokerages also recently commented on MA. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on Mastercard from $618.00 to $665.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Mastercard from $590.00 to $610.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. TD Cowen increased their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $533.00 to $567.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $550.00 to $565.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, November 14th. Finally, Barclays increased their price target on shares of Mastercard from $536.00 to $576.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $595.64.

Mastercard Trading Down 1.8 %

Shares of MA stock opened at $555.63 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $509.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 42.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.17 and a beta of 1.10. Mastercard has a 1 year low of $428.86 and a 1 year high of $576.94. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $528.28 and its 200 day simple moving average is $501.43. 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 (NYSE:MA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The credit services provider reported $3.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.71 by $0.11. Mastercard had a net margin of 45.26% and a return on equity of 178.27%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict 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 Thursday, January 9th will be issued a $0.76 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 10th. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.55%. 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

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Highline Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in Mastercard in the third quarter valued at about $25,000. First Personal Financial Services acquired a new position in Mastercard during the 3rd quarter valued at about $39,000. FSA Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Mastercard during the 3rd quarter valued at about $54,000. Raelipskie Partnership boosted its stake in shares of Mastercard by 120.0% in the 3rd quarter. Raelipskie Partnership now owns 110 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $54,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Legacy Investment Solutions LLC bought a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the third quarter worth approximately $55,000. 97.28% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Mastercard Company Profile

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.