Mastercard (NYSE:MA) Stock Price Up 1.4% on Better-Than-Expected Earnings

Shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA - Get Free Report) shot up 1.4% during trading on Friday following a stronger than expected earnings report. The stock traded as high as $507.97 and last traded at $506.65. 758,380 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 69% from the average session volume of 2,435,617 shares. The stock had previously closed at $499.59.

The credit services provider reported $3.89 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.73 by $0.16. Mastercard had a return on equity of 179.78% and a net margin of 46.45%. The firm had revenue of $7.37 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.27 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $3.39 EPS. The company's revenue was up 12.8% compared to the same quarter last year.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 8th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, October 9th will be paid a dividend of $0.66 per share. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.52%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, October 9th. Mastercard's payout ratio is 20.18%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on MA shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price target on shares of Mastercard from $510.00 to $580.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of Mastercard from $528.00 to $538.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Piper Sandler reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $565.00 price target (up from $536.00) on shares of Mastercard in a report on Friday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on Mastercard from $593.00 to $580.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday. Finally, KeyCorp upped their target price on Mastercard from $515.00 to $580.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty have issued a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Mastercard presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $537.92.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO J. Mehra Sachin sold 13,439 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on 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 transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 27,304 shares in the company, valued at $12,423,320. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In related 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 sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 27,304 shares of the company's stock, valued at $12,423,320. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 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 value of $50,952,050.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 91,924,308 shares in the company, valued at approximately $42,970,017,774.60. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 340,809 shares of company stock worth $159,610,703. 0.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Mastercard

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Coppell Advisory Solutions Corp. bought a new stake in Mastercard during the first quarter worth $608,000. SteelPeak Wealth LLC grew its stake in shares of Mastercard by 48.6% in the 2nd quarter. SteelPeak Wealth LLC now owns 4,928 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $2,174,000 after acquiring an additional 1,612 shares in the last quarter. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Mastercard in the first quarter valued at about $2,938,000. OMC Financial Services LTD bought a new position in shares of Mastercard during the first quarter valued at about $17,854,000. Finally, Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. purchased a new position in Mastercard during the second quarter worth about $6,850,000. Institutional investors own 97.28% of the company's stock.

Mastercard Stock Up 1.7 %

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 firm has a market capitalization of $469.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.95, a P/E/G ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 1.10. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $494.93 and its 200-day simple moving average is $466.50.

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.