Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Buy” by Analysts

Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) has received a consensus recommendation of “Buy” from the twenty-seven brokerages that are covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, twenty have issued a buy recommendation and four have given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year price objective among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $507.55.

Several equities research analysts recently commented on MA shares. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on Mastercard from $536.00 to $524.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 2nd. Susquehanna boosted their target price on shares of Mastercard from $535.00 to $540.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. Mizuho reduced their price target on shares of Mastercard from $480.00 to $478.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 2nd. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on shares of Mastercard from $525.00 to $545.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 18th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $510.00 to $500.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 18th.

Insider Transactions at Mastercard

In related news, CFO J. Mehra Sachin sold 13,439 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $455.00, for a total transaction of $6,114,745.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 27,304 shares in the company, valued at $12,423,320. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other Mastercard news, CFO J. Mehra Sachin sold 13,439 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $455.00, for a total transaction of $6,114,745.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 27,304 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,423,320. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, major shareholder Foundation Mastercard sold 138,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $453.19, for a total value of $62,540,220.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 92,152,308 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $41,762,504,462.52. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 1,894,067 shares of company stock worth $852,731,236 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Mastercard

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Altshuler Shaham Ltd purchased a new stake in Mastercard during the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. VitalStone Financial LLC boosted its position in shares of Mastercard by 300.0% in the fourth quarter. VitalStone Financial LLC now owns 60 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 45 shares during the period. Westend Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Mastercard during the first quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Palisade Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in Mastercard during the first quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Finally, Scarborough Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Mastercard during the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Mastercard Stock Performance

Shares of MA opened at $455.69 on Thursday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $447.23 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $457.64. Mastercard has a 12 month low of $359.77 and a 12 month high of $490.00. The company has a current ratio of 1.14, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.95. The stock has a market capitalization of $423.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.82 and a beta of 1.09.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 9th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, July 9th were given a dividend of $0.66 per share. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.58%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, July 9th. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio is presently 20.99%.

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.