Mastercard (NYSE:MA) Shares Up 0% – Here’s What Happened

Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) shares shot up 0% during trading on Friday . The stock traded as high as $499.05 and last traded at $495.13. 363,953 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 85% from the average session volume of 2,449,120 shares. The stock had previously closed at $494.97.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have weighed in on MA shares. BNP Paribas downgraded Mastercard from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $470.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Tuesday, September 3rd. Argus raised shares of Mastercard to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $528.00 to $538.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on shares of Mastercard from $500.00 to $526.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Finally, Evercore ISI cut their price target on Mastercard from $540.00 to $525.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, June 25th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nineteen have assigned a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $517.22.

Mastercard Stock Performance

The business has a 50-day moving average of $476.54 and a 200 day moving average of $462.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.95, a current ratio of 1.14 and a quick ratio of 1.14. The company has a market cap of $462.67 billion, a PE ratio of 39.56, a PEG ratio of 1.96 and a beta of 1.10.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The credit services provider reported $3.59 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.51 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $6.96 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.85 billion. Mastercard had a net margin of 46.45% and a return on equity of 179.78%. Equities research analysts anticipate that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.29 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 8th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, October 9th will be paid a dividend of $0.66 per share. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.53%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, October 9th. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio is presently 20.99%.

Insider Transactions at Mastercard

In related news, major shareholder Foundation Mastercard sold 119,000 shares of Mastercard stock in a transaction on Friday, August 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $468.46, for a total transaction of $55,746,740.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 92,033,308 shares in the company, valued at approximately $43,113,923,465.68. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Mastercard news, major shareholder Foundation Mastercard sold 119,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $468.46, for a total transaction of $55,746,740.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 92,033,308 shares in the company, valued at approximately $43,113,923,465.68. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO J. Mehra Sachin sold 13,439 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $455.00, for a total transaction of $6,114,745.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 27,304 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,423,320. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 340,809 shares of company stock worth $159,610,703 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Mastercard

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Waterloo Capital L.P. bought a new position in shares of Mastercard during the 4th quarter valued at about $663,000. Sompo Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in Mastercard by 25.5% during the fourth quarter. Sompo Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 2,560 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $1,092,000 after buying an additional 520 shares during the last quarter. Personal CFO Solutions LLC grew its holdings in Mastercard by 25.0% during the 4th quarter. Personal CFO Solutions LLC now owns 7,377 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $3,146,000 after buying an additional 1,477 shares in the last quarter. Connectus Wealth LLC increased its stake in Mastercard by 19.2% in the 4th quarter. Connectus Wealth LLC now owns 365,874 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $156,049,000 after acquiring an additional 58,935 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Infusive Asset Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the 4th quarter worth approximately $7,449,000. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other 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.