Mastercard (NYSE:MA) Price Target Lowered to $588.00 at Oppenheimer

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) had its price objective cut by Oppenheimer from $591.00 to $588.00 in a research note issued to investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports. They currently have an outperform rating on the credit services provider’s stock.

A number of other research firms also recently issued reports on MA. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on Mastercard from $550.00 to $565.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. Susquehanna increased their price target on shares of Mastercard from $540.00 to $605.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $510.00 to $580.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Macquarie lifted their target price on Mastercard from $505.00 to $565.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Compass Point started coverage on Mastercard in a research report on Wednesday, September 4th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $525.00 price target for the company. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Mastercard presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $562.76.

Mastercard Stock Performance

Shares of MA stock opened at $523.28 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $480.28 billion, a PE ratio of 39.58, a P/E/G ratio of 2.38 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $519.60 and a 200-day moving average price of $483.43. Mastercard has a 52 week low of $416.53 and a 52 week high of $537.13. The company has a quick ratio of 1.29, a current ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.36.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last released its quarterly 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 return on equity of 178.27% and a net margin of 45.26%. The firm had revenue of $7.37 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.27 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.39 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 12.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Mastercard will post 14.47 earnings per share for the current year.

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

Mastercard Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared 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. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, January 9th. This is an increase from Mastercard’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.66. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.58%. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 19.97%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Highline Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Mastercard in the third quarter worth about $25,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL purchased a new position in shares of Mastercard in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $34,000. First Personal Financial Services acquired a new stake in Mastercard in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $39,000. Fairway Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in Mastercard during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $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 valued at $43,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. 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.