Mastercard (NYSE:MA) Price Target Raised to $565.00

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) had its target price boosted by BMO Capital Markets from $550.00 to $565.00 in a report released on Thursday morning,Benzinga reports. BMO Capital Markets currently has an outperform rating on the credit services provider’s stock.

A number of other research analysts also recently commented on the company. Compass Point assumed coverage on Mastercard in a research note on Wednesday, September 4th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $525.00 price target for the company. Susquehanna upped their price target on shares of Mastercard from $540.00 to $605.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $500.00 to $526.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Mizuho upped their target price on Mastercard from $496.00 to $532.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Robert W. Baird lifted 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. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-one have issued a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $549.16.

Mastercard Trading Up 0.3 %

MA stock opened at $521.89 on Thursday. Mastercard has a 52 week low of $395.55 and a 52 week high of $534.03. 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’s 50-day simple moving average is $504.09 and its 200 day simple moving average is $471.18. The company has a market capitalization of $479.01 billion, a PE ratio of 39.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.28 and a beta of 1.10.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The credit services provider reported $3.89 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.73 by $0.16. The company had revenue of $7.37 billion for 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 revenue for the quarter was up 12.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $3.39 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Mastercard will post 14.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 8th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, October 9th were given a dividend of $0.66 per share. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.51%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, October 9th. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 19.97%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, major shareholder Foundation Mastercard sold 109,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $467.45, for a total value of $50,952,050.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 91,924,308 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $42,970,017,774.60. The trade was a 0.12 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CMO Venkata R. Madabhushi sold 4,685 shares of Mastercard stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $489.86, for a total value of $2,294,994.10. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer now owns 15,031 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,363,085.66. The trade was a 23.76 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 208,370 shares of company stock valued at $97,749,218 over the last quarter. Insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Mastercard

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Highline Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Mastercard in the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL acquired a new stake in Mastercard in the 2nd quarter valued at $34,000. Fairway Wealth LLC bought a new stake in Mastercard during the 2nd quarter valued at $35,000. First Personal Financial Services acquired a new position in Mastercard during the third quarter worth $39,000. Finally, Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Mastercard by 74.0% during the third quarter. Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 87 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 37 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.