Mastercard (NYSE:MA) Shares Up 0.2% – Here’s Why

Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) shot up 0.2% during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $529.19 and last traded at $526.57. 1,942,487 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 21% from the average session volume of 2,467,849 shares. The stock had previously closed at $525.55.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on MA shares. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on shares of Mastercard from $545.00 to $575.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. KeyCorp raised their price target on Mastercard from $515.00 to $580.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $572.00 price objective on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. 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. Finally, Macquarie upped their price target on Mastercard from $505.00 to $565.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $562.76.

Mastercard Trading Down 0.8 %

The company’s 50 day moving average price is $523.06 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $488.98. The firm has a market cap of $479.47 billion, a PE ratio of 39.52, a P/E/G ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a quick ratio of 1.29, a current ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.36.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The credit services provider reported $3.89 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.73 by $0.16. Mastercard had a net margin of 45.26% and a return on equity of 178.27%. The company had revenue of $7.37 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.27 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $3.39 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.47 EPS for the current year.

Mastercard Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 7th. Investors of record on Thursday, January 9th will be issued a dividend of $0.76 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, January 9th. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.58%. This is a boost from Mastercard’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.66. Mastercard’s payout ratio is presently 23.00%.

Mastercard announced that its board has authorized a share repurchase 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 leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Mastercard

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in MA. Versor Investments LP purchased a new position in shares of Mastercard during the second quarter valued at $432,000. Founders Financial Securities LLC raised its stake in Mastercard by 7.7% in the second quarter. Founders Financial Securities LLC now owns 617 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $272,000 after buying an additional 44 shares in the last quarter. GPM Growth Investors Inc. purchased a new stake in Mastercard during the second quarter worth $263,000. Mattern Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Mastercard by 41.9% during the 2nd quarter. Mattern Capital Management LLC now owns 1,046 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $461,000 after acquiring an additional 309 shares in the last quarter. Finally, FineMark National Bank & Trust increased its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 2.0% in the 2nd quarter. FineMark National Bank & Trust now owns 56,611 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $24,975,000 after acquiring an additional 1,126 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Mastercard Company Profile

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.