Bank of America Increases Mastercard (NYSE:MA) Price Target to $509.00

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) had its price objective lifted by equities research analysts at Bank of America from $480.00 to $509.00 in a report released on Tuesday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a “neutral” rating on the credit services provider’s stock. Bank of America‘s price objective would indicate a potential upside of 1.72% from the stock’s current price.

MA has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Susquehanna raised their price objective on Mastercard from $535.00 to $540.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. Compass Point began coverage on Mastercard in a research note on Wednesday, September 4th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $525.00 price objective for the company. William Blair upgraded Mastercard to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Citigroup lifted their price target on Mastercard from $528.00 to $538.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Finally, TD Cowen lifted their price objective on Mastercard from $532.00 to $533.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-one have issued a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $512.08.

Mastercard Price Performance

Mastercard stock traded up $2.69 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $500.40. 1,050,430 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,428,688. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $461.70 and its 200-day moving average is $460.35. Mastercard has a 12 month low of $359.77 and a 12 month high of $501.74. The stock has a market cap of $465.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.72, a PEG ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.95.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The credit services provider reported $3.59 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.51 by $0.08. Mastercard had a return on equity of 179.78% and a net margin of 46.45%. The firm had revenue of $6.96 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.85 billion. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Mastercard will post 14.29 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Mastercard news, major shareholder Foundation Mastercard sold 90,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $468.80, for a total value of $42,192,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 91,649,308 shares in the company, valued at approximately $42,965,195,590.40. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other news, major shareholder Foundation Mastercard sold 90,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $468.80, for a total transaction of $42,192,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 91,649,308 shares in the company, valued at approximately $42,965,195,590.40. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, 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 transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 27,304 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,423,320. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 720,467 shares of company stock worth $331,875,955 in the last quarter. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. VitalStone Financial LLC grew its stake in Mastercard by 300.0% in the 4th quarter. VitalStone Financial LLC now owns 60 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 45 shares during the last quarter. Westend Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Mastercard in the 1st quarter valued at $27,000. Palisade Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in Mastercard in the 1st quarter valued at $27,000. Scarborough Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Mastercard in the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Finally, Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Mastercard in the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.