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

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) had its price target raised by Macquarie from $565.00 to $645.00 in a research report report published on Friday morning,Benzinga reports. Macquarie currently has an outperform rating on the credit services provider’s stock.

MA has been the topic of several other research reports. BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on Mastercard from $550.00 to $565.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. Seaport Res Ptn lowered shares of Mastercard from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Mizuho increased their target price on shares of Mastercard from $496.00 to $532.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating and set a $635.00 price target (up from $591.00) on shares of Mastercard in a report on Friday. Finally, Raymond James reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $640.00 price objective (up from $614.00) on shares of Mastercard in a report on Friday. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $595.64.

Mastercard Stock Down 1.8 %

Shares of NYSE:MA opened at $555.63 on Friday. Mastercard has a 52 week low of $428.86 and a 52 week high of $576.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.36, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a current ratio of 1.29. The company has a market cap of $509.97 billion, a PE ratio of 42.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.17 and a beta of 1.10. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $528.28 and a 200 day simple moving average of $501.03.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The credit services provider reported $3.82 earnings per share (EPS) 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%. As a group, research analysts expect that Mastercard will post 14.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Mastercard Increases Dividend

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

Mastercard announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, December 17th that authorizes the company to repurchase $12.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the credit services provider to purchase up to 2.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Mastercard

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Global Retirement Partners LLC increased its holdings in Mastercard by 2.4% in the 4th quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 11,968 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $6,302,000 after buying an additional 285 shares during the period. Semus Wealth Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Mastercard by 5.0% during the 4th quarter. Semus Wealth Partners LLC now owns 3,230 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $1,701,000 after acquiring an additional 155 shares in the last quarter. SilverOak Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Mastercard in the fourth quarter valued at about $214,000. Beirne Wealth Consulting Services LLC acquired a new position in Mastercard in the fourth quarter worth about $211,000. Finally, Atlas Legacy Advisors LLC bought a new position in Mastercard during the fourth quarter worth about $749,000. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.