Mastercard (NYSE:MA) Trading 0.6% Higher – Still a Buy?

Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)’s share price shot up 0.6% on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $516.05 and last traded at $515.07. 442,855 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 77% from the average session volume of 1,922,547 shares. The stock had previously closed at $511.93.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have commented on MA shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of Mastercard from $593.00 to $580.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $580.00 to $618.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on Mastercard from $564.00 to $654.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. UBS Group increased their price target on Mastercard from $590.00 to $610.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, November 14th. Finally, Macquarie lifted their price objective on Mastercard from $505.00 to $565.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Mastercard currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $562.76.

Mastercard Stock Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $473.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.04, a P/E/G ratio of 2.36 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. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $523.81 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $491.27.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The credit services provider reported $3.89 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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 analysts’ expectations of $7.27 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $3.39 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 12.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 7th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 9th will be issued a $0.76 dividend. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.59%. This is a boost from Mastercard’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.66. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 10th. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio is presently 23.00%.

Mastercard declared that its board has approved a share repurchase program on Tuesday, December 17th that allows the company to buyback $12.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the credit services provider to reacquire up to 2.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Institutional Trading of Mastercard

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