Mastercard (NYSE:MA) Earns “Outperform” Rating from Raymond James

Raymond James reissued their outperform rating on shares of Mastercard (NYSE:MA) in a research report released on Friday,Benzinga reports. Raymond James currently has a $640.00 target price on the credit services provider’s stock, up from their prior target price of $614.00.

A number of other research firms also recently commented on MA. Mizuho boosted their target price on Mastercard from $496.00 to $532.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $580.00 to $618.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $590.00 to $610.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 9th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on shares of Mastercard from $550.00 to $565.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. Finally, Piper Sandler raised their price target on shares of Mastercard from $575.00 to $591.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $595.64.

Mastercard Stock Down 1.8 %

MA stock opened at $555.63 on Friday. Mastercard has a one year low of $428.86 and a one year 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 fifty day moving average of $528.28 and a 200-day moving average of $501.03. The stock has a market capitalization 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.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last released 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 year.

Mastercard declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback 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 stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is 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 issued a dividend of $0.76 per share. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.55%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 10th. This is an increase from Mastercard’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.66. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 23.00%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

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