Mastercard (NYSE:MA) Upgraded at Hsbc Global Res

Hsbc Global Res upgraded shares of Mastercard (NYSE:MA) from a hold rating to a strong-buy rating in a research report report published on Monday morning,Zacks.com reports.

Several other brokerages also recently commented on MA. Truist Financial lowered their price objective on Mastercard from $638.00 to $630.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, November 4th. UBS Group raised their price objective on Mastercard from $690.00 to $700.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 31st. Morgan Stanley set a $665.00 target price on Mastercard and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, October 31st. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of Mastercard from $669.00 to $660.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 31st. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Mastercard from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, December 6th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have issued a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $652.50.

Mastercard Trading Up 0.3%

NYSE:MA opened at $539.21 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $484.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.48, a P/E/G ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 0.87. The company has a quick ratio of 1.12, a current ratio of 1.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.40. The company has a fifty day moving average of $554.63 and a 200 day moving average of $566.41. Mastercard has a 52 week low of $465.59 and a 52 week high of $601.77.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The credit services provider reported $4.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.31 by $0.07. Mastercard had a net margin of 45.28% and a return on equity of 202.03%. The business had revenue of $8.60 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.53 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $3.89 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 16.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that Mastercard will post 15.91 earnings per share for the current year.

Mastercard Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 9th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 9th will be paid a dividend of $0.87 per share. This is a positive change from Mastercard’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.76. This represents a $3.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 9th. Mastercard’s payout ratio is currently 19.44%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Mastercard

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Pinion Investment Advisors LLC increased its stake in Mastercard by 0.8% in the 2nd quarter. Pinion Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,272 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $1,276,000 after buying an additional 18 shares during the period. KRS Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Mastercard by 0.6% in the 2nd quarter. KRS Capital Management LLC now owns 2,848 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $1,601,000 after buying an additional 18 shares during the period. Nvest Financial LLC grew its stake in Mastercard by 1.2% in the 2nd quarter. Nvest Financial LLC now owns 1,505 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $846,000 after acquiring an additional 18 shares in the last quarter. Washington Trust Advisors Inc. increased its position in shares of Mastercard by 5.6% during the second quarter. Washington Trust Advisors Inc. now owns 339 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $191,000 after acquiring an additional 18 shares during the period. Finally, Rialto Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Mastercard by 13.0% during the second quarter. Rialto Wealth Management LLC now owns 156 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $88,000 after acquiring an additional 18 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.