Mastercard (NYSE:MA) Trading 0.8% Higher

Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) rose 0.8% during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $449.29 and last traded at $448.18. Approximately 3,192,350 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 26% from the average daily volume of 2,526,183 shares. The stock had previously closed at $444.65.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MA has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Barclays cut their price target on shares of Mastercard from $549.00 to $530.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, May 6th. TD Cowen initiated coverage on shares of Mastercard in a report on Thursday, April 11th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $545.00 price target for the company. Susquehanna reissued a “positive” rating and issued a $535.00 price target on shares of Mastercard in a report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on shares of Mastercard from $525.00 to $545.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, April 18th. Finally, Piper Sandler started coverage on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Monday, May 13th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $531.00 target price on the stock. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $496.91.

Mastercard Price Performance

The company’s 50-day moving average price is $450.47 and its 200-day moving average price is $453.59. The company has a quick ratio of 1.09, a current ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.86. The firm has a market cap of $416.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.63, a PEG ratio of 1.74 and a beta of 1.09.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The credit services provider reported $3.31 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.22 by $0.09. Mastercard had a net margin of 46.09% and a return on equity of 183.70%. The firm had revenue of $6.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.34 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.80 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 10.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.26 EPS for the current year.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 9th. Investors of record on Tuesday, July 9th will be paid a dividend of $0.66 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, July 9th. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.59%. Mastercard’s payout ratio is 20.99%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, major shareholder Foundation Mastercard sold 138,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $453.19, for a total transaction of $62,540,220.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 92,152,308 shares in the company, valued at $41,762,504,462.52. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other Mastercard news, major shareholder Foundation Mastercard sold 138,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $453.19, for a total value of $62,540,220.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 92,152,308 shares in the company, valued at $41,762,504,462.52. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Craig Vosburg sold 9,028 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $447.28, for a total transaction of $4,038,043.84. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 58,940 shares in the company, valued at $26,362,683.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 3,163,228 shares of company stock worth $1,428,540,870. Company insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Mastercard

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. grew its position in shares of Mastercard by 6.0% during the third quarter. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. now owns 375,995 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $148,922,000 after acquiring an additional 21,267 shares during the last quarter. Royal Bank of Canada grew its position in shares of Mastercard by 1.1% during the third quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 5,314,881 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $2,104,214,000 after acquiring an additional 56,642 shares during the last quarter. Old North State Trust LLC grew its position in shares of Mastercard by 5.0% during the third quarter. Old North State Trust LLC now owns 1,413 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $559,000 after acquiring an additional 67 shares during the last quarter. Crestwood Advisors Group LLC grew its position in shares of Mastercard by 2.1% during the third quarter. Crestwood Advisors Group LLC now owns 13,628 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $5,395,000 after acquiring an additional 277 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dana Investment Advisors Inc. grew its position in shares of Mastercard by 11.1% during the third quarter. Dana Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 9,831 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $3,892,000 after acquiring an additional 982 shares during 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.