Mastercard (NYSE:MA) Stock Price Expected to Rise, KeyCorp Analyst Says

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) had its price target boosted by equities research analysts at KeyCorp from $600.00 to $630.00 in a report issued on Friday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an “overweight” rating on the credit services provider’s stock. KeyCorp’s target price indicates a potential upside of 11.91% from the stock’s previous close.

Several other research firms have also recently weighed in on MA. TD Cowen increased their price target on shares of Mastercard from $533.00 to $567.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 15th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on Mastercard from $545.00 to $575.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Barclays lifted their price target on Mastercard from $536.00 to $576.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price objective on Mastercard from $510.00 to $580.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Oppenheimer cut their target price on Mastercard from $591.00 to $588.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $571.67.

Mastercard Stock Down 0.5 %

Mastercard stock traded down $3.07 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $562.94. The stock had a trading volume of 942,323 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,683,385. The stock has a market capitalization of $516.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 42.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.17 and a beta of 1.10. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $527.58 and its 200-day simple moving average is $500.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.36, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a current ratio of 1.29. Mastercard has a 1-year low of $428.86 and a 1-year high of $576.94.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The credit services provider reported $3.82 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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, analysts expect that Mastercard will post 14.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback program on Tuesday, December 17th that allows the company to repurchase $12.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the credit services provider to buy up to 2.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Mastercard

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of MA. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in Mastercard by 120,665.3% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 8,041,758 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $3,971,020,000 after acquiring an additional 8,035,099 shares during the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can increased its holdings in Mastercard by 51.7% in the 3rd quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 5,765,714 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $2,846,187,000 after buying an additional 1,965,782 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC lifted its stake in Mastercard by 3.4% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 21,355,081 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $10,545,139,000 after acquiring an additional 700,769 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Mastercard by 2.5% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 18,375,053 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $9,043,972,000 after acquiring an additional 453,773 shares during the period. Finally, Montrusco Bolton Investments Inc. raised its stake in Mastercard by 52.8% during the 3rd quarter. Montrusco Bolton Investments Inc. now owns 1,185,081 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $573,017,000 after buying an additional 409,334 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

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.