Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) Receives Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) has been given an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the twenty-seven research firms that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, twenty-three have assigned a buy recommendation and one has issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average 12 month price target among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $562.76.

MA has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. UBS Group raised their price target on Mastercard from $590.00 to $610.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. Bank of America lifted their price target on shares of Mastercard from $480.00 to $509.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 17th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased 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. Susquehanna boosted their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $540.00 to $605.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Robert W. Baird increased their target price on Mastercard from $545.00 to $575.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th.

Mastercard Stock Down 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE:MA opened at $521.36 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $523.58 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $489.72. 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 market capitalization of $478.52 billion, a PE ratio of 39.44, a PEG ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 1.10. Mastercard has a 52 week low of $416.53 and a 52 week high of $537.70.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The credit services provider reported $3.89 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.73 by $0.16. The business had revenue of $7.37 billion during 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 firm’s quarterly revenue was up 12.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $3.39 EPS. Analysts forecast that Mastercard will post 14.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Mastercard announced that its board has initiated a share buyback plan on Tuesday, December 17th that allows the company to repurchase $12.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the credit services provider to repurchase up to 2.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Mastercard Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 7th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 10th will be given a dividend of $0.76 per share. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.58%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 10th. This is an increase from Mastercard’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.66. Mastercard’s payout ratio is 23.00%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Mastercard

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Temasek Holdings Private Ltd boosted its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 2.3% during the 3rd quarter. Temasek Holdings Private Ltd now owns 2,805,554 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $1,385,383,000 after buying an additional 62,891 shares during the period. Sarasin & Partners LLP lifted its position in Mastercard by 4.7% during the third quarter. Sarasin & Partners LLP now owns 831,942 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $410,813,000 after acquiring an additional 37,486 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 2.0% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 5,010,430 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $2,474,151,000 after acquiring an additional 100,550 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Mastercard by 4.8% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 3,031,915 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $1,497,160,000 after purchasing an additional 138,842 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. bought a new position in shares of Mastercard during the second quarter worth approximately $6,850,000. 97.28% of the stock is 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.