Mastercard (NYSE:MA) Trading 0.2% Higher – Still a Buy?

Shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) were up 0.2% during mid-day trading on Friday . The company traded as high as $515.99 and last traded at $514.70. Approximately 620,297 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 75% from the average daily volume of 2,433,066 shares. The stock had previously closed at $513.76.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently commented on MA shares. William Blair raised shares of Mastercard to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. TD Cowen increased their price objective on Mastercard from $532.00 to $533.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Evercore ISI cut their price objective on Mastercard from $540.00 to $525.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, June 25th. KeyCorp upped their target price on Mastercard from $490.00 to $515.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on shares of Mastercard from $500.00 to $526.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have issued a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Mastercard currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $524.64.

Mastercard Stock Up 0.6 %

The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.95. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $485.71 and a 200 day simple moving average of $463.95. The firm has a market capitalization of $480.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.91, a P/E/G ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 1.10.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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 company had revenue of $6.96 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.85 billion. Mastercard had a net margin of 46.45% and a return on equity of 179.78%. On average, equities analysts expect that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 8th. Investors of record on Wednesday, October 9th will be issued a $0.66 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, October 9th. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.51%. Mastercard’s payout ratio is currently 20.99%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Mastercard

In other Mastercard news, CFO J. Mehra Sachin sold 13,439 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $455.00, for a total value of $6,114,745.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 27,304 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,423,320. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other Mastercard news, CFO J. Mehra Sachin sold 13,439 shares of Mastercard stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $455.00, for a total value of $6,114,745.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 27,304 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,423,320. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder Foundation Mastercard sold 109,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $467.45, for a total transaction of $50,952,050.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 91,924,308 shares in the company, valued at $42,970,017,774.60. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 340,809 shares of company stock worth $159,610,703. Insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Mastercard

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in Mastercard by 0.4% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 75,584,606 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $36,399,279,000 after purchasing an additional 330,872 shares during the period. Capital Research Global Investors boosted its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 0.3% in the 1st quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 13,651,904 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $6,574,347,000 after buying an additional 43,881 shares in the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its position in shares of Mastercard by 1.4% during the second quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 5,082,729 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $2,241,297,000 after purchasing an additional 71,569 shares in the last quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board grew its stake in shares of Mastercard by 2.7% during the second quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 4,327,168 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $1,908,973,000 after acquiring an additional 113,238 shares during the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. increased its stake in Mastercard by 0.9% during the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 4,250,760 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $1,875,266,000 after purchasing an additional 38,380 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

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.