Mastercard’s (MA) Outperform Rating Reiterated at William Blair

William Blair reissued their outperform rating on shares of Mastercard (NYSE:MA) in a report published on Monday,RTT News reports. William Blair also issued estimates for Mastercard’s Q4 2024 earnings at $3.73 EPS, FY2024 earnings at $14.51 EPS, Q1 2025 earnings at $3.56 EPS, Q2 2025 earnings at $4.04 EPS, Q3 2025 earnings at $4.23 EPS, Q4 2025 earnings at $4.34 EPS, FY2025 earnings at $16.15 EPS, Q1 2026 earnings at $4.20 EPS, Q2 2026 earnings at $4.73 EPS, Q3 2026 earnings at $5.01 EPS and FY2026 earnings at $19.09 EPS.

A number of other research analysts also recently weighed in on the company. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on Mastercard from $550.00 to $565.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, November 14th. Compass Point started coverage on Mastercard in a report on Wednesday, September 4th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $525.00 price objective for the company. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Mastercard from $590.00 to $610.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, November 14th. Oppenheimer initiated coverage on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $591.00 price target for the company. Finally, Bank of America boosted their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $480.00 to $509.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 17th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Mastercard presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $549.16.

Mastercard Price Performance

Shares of Mastercard stock opened at $532.19 on Monday. The business has a 50 day moving average of $508.78 and a 200 day moving average of $475.23. Mastercard has a 52 week low of $404.32 and a 52 week high of $534.03. The company has a market cap of $488.46 billion, a PE ratio of 40.26, a P/E/G ratio of 2.34 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 issued its quarterly earnings data 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. Mastercard had a net margin of 45.26% and a return on equity of 178.27%. The business had revenue of $7.37 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.27 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $3.39 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Mastercard will post 14.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 8th. Investors of record on Wednesday, October 9th were issued a $0.66 dividend. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.50%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, October 9th. Mastercard’s payout ratio is currently 19.97%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Mastercard

In other news, CMO Venkata R. Madabhushi sold 4,685 shares of Mastercard stock in a transaction on Friday, September 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $493.10, for a total transaction of $2,310,173.50. Following the transaction, the chief marketing officer now owns 17,118 shares in the company, valued at $8,440,885.80. This trade represents a 21.49 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Mastercard

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Highline Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Mastercard in the third quarter worth approximately $25,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL purchased a new stake in Mastercard in the 2nd quarter worth $34,000. Fairway Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Mastercard in the second quarter worth about $35,000. First Personal Financial Services bought a new position in Mastercard during the third quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Finally, Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Mastercard by 74.0% during the 3rd quarter. Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 87 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $43,000 after buying an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. 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.