Mastercard (NYSE:MA) Price Target Lowered to $610.00 at Macquarie

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) had its target price lowered by equities researchers at Macquarie from $645.00 to $610.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “outperform” rating on the credit services provider’s stock. Macquarie’s target price points to a potential upside of 9.09% from the company’s previous close.

Other equities analysts have also issued reports about the stock. Raymond James restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $640.00 price objective (up from $614.00) on shares of Mastercard in a report on Friday, January 31st. DZ Bank raised Mastercard from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $620.00 price target on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on Mastercard from $654.00 to $644.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. Susquehanna upped their target price on shares of Mastercard from $605.00 to $670.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Mastercard from $585.00 to $625.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $606.18.

Mastercard Stock Up 2.3 %

Shares of NYSE:MA opened at $559.18 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $532.33 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $531.49. Mastercard has a 12-month low of $428.86 and a 12-month high of $582.23. The stock has a market capitalization of $509.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.26, a PEG ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.06.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The credit services provider reported $3.73 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.57 by $0.16. The firm had revenue of $7.25 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.12 billion. Mastercard had a return on equity of 188.47% and a net margin of 45.71%. Mastercard’s quarterly revenue was up 14.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $3.31 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Mastercard will post 15.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Edward Grunde Mclaughlin sold 7,132 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $534.68, for a total transaction of $3,813,337.76. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 34,524 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,459,292.32. This represents a 17.12 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Michael Miebach sold 15,775 shares of Mastercard stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $550.16, for a total transaction of $8,678,774.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 84,871 shares in the company, valued at approximately $46,692,629.36. This represents a 15.67 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Mastercard

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in MA. NewSquare Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Mastercard in the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. Marshall Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Mastercard in the 4th quarter worth $30,000. Measured Risk Portfolios Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Mastercard in the 4th quarter worth about $31,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Mastercard in the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. Finally, Navigoe LLC purchased a new position in Mastercard in the fourth quarter worth about $33,000. 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.