Mastercard (NYSE:MA) Trading Up 0.2% - Still a Buy?

Shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA - Get Free Report) were up 0.2% on Friday . The company traded as high as $514.73 and last traded at $511.81. Approximately 308,343 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 87% from the average daily volume of 2,422,789 shares. The stock had previously closed at $510.62.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on MA shares. BMO Capital Markets reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $520.00 target price on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Wednesday, August 14th. William Blair upgraded Mastercard to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. BNP Paribas downgraded Mastercard from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $470.00 price target on the stock. in a report on Tuesday, September 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Mastercard from $570.00 to $593.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday. Finally, Barclays increased their target price on Mastercard from $536.00 to $576.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have assigned a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $525.68.

Mastercard Stock Performance

The company has a current ratio of 1.14, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.95. The stock has a market cap of $471.65 billion, a PE ratio of 40.33, a P/E/G ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 1.10. The business's 50-day moving average price is $491.07 and its 200-day moving average price is $465.24.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The credit services provider reported $3.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.51 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $6.96 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.85 billion. Mastercard had a return on equity of 179.78% and a net margin of 46.45%. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 8th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, October 9th will be issued a $0.66 dividend. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.52%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, October 9th. Mastercard's dividend payout ratio is presently 20.99%.

Insider Activity

In related news, major shareholder Foundation Mastercard sold 119,000 shares of Mastercard stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $468.46, for a total value of $55,746,740.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 92,033,308 shares in the company, valued at $43,113,923,465.68. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In other news, major shareholder Foundation Mastercard sold 119,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $468.46, for a total value of $55,746,740.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 92,033,308 shares in the company, valued at $43,113,923,465.68. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO J. Mehra Sachin sold 13,439 shares of the company's 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 in the company, valued at approximately $12,423,320. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 340,809 shares of company stock worth $159,610,703 over the last 90 days. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Mastercard

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of MA. Highline Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Mastercard in the 3rd quarter worth $25,000. Palisade Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the first quarter worth about $27,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL acquired a new position in shares of Mastercard during the 2nd quarter worth about $34,000. Fairway Wealth LLC purchased a new position in Mastercard in the 2nd quarter valued at about $35,000. Finally, Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in 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 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.