Mastercard (NYSE:MA) Stock Price Down 1.6% – Time to Sell?

Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)’s stock price traded down 1.6% during trading on Friday . The stock traded as low as $506.12 and last traded at $507.39. 784,554 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 63% from the average session volume of 2,117,840 shares. The stock had previously closed at $515.64.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MA has been the topic of a number of research reports. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of Mastercard from $566.00 to $572.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Mastercard from $564.00 to $654.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. Mizuho upped their price target on Mastercard from $496.00 to $532.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. TD Cowen increased their price objective on Mastercard from $533.00 to $567.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 15th. Finally, Bank of America upped their target price on shares of Mastercard from $480.00 to $509.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 17th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Mastercard has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $566.13.

Mastercard Price Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $463.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 1.10. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $524.09 and its 200 day moving average price is $492.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.36, a current ratio of 1.29 and a quick ratio of 1.29.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The credit services provider reported $3.89 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.73 by $0.16. The business had revenue of $7.37 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.27 billion. Mastercard had a net margin of 45.26% and a return on equity of 178.27%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 12.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $3.39 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.47 EPS for the current year.

Mastercard Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 7th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 9th will be given a $0.76 dividend. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.60%. This is a boost from Mastercard’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.66. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 10th. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 23.00%.

Mastercard declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback program on Tuesday, December 17th that allows the company to repurchase $12.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the credit services provider to buy up to 2.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are often a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Highline Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL purchased a new position in shares of Mastercard in the second quarter valued at about $34,000. Fairway Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of Mastercard in the second quarter worth about $35,000. First Personal Financial Services purchased a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the third quarter worth about $39,000. Finally, Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC raised 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 valued at $43,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Mastercard Company Profile

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.