Mastercard (NYSE:MA) Upgraded to “Buy” at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Mastercard (NYSE:MA) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note published on Saturday morning.

A number of other analysts have also recently weighed in on the company. KeyCorp restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $665.00 price target on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Wednesday, October 22nd. TD Cowen raised their target price on Mastercard from $668.00 to $671.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday. Tigress Financial boosted their target price on Mastercard from $685.00 to $730.00 and gave the stock a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 6th. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of Mastercard from $690.00 to $700.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 31st. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have issued a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $668.78.

Mastercard Stock Down 0.9%

Shares of NYSE:MA opened at $538.62 on Friday. Mastercard has a fifty-two week low of $465.59 and a fifty-two week high of $601.77. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $554.56 and its 200 day moving average price is $564.43. The company has a quick ratio of 1.12, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.36. The stock has a market cap of $483.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.84 and a beta of 0.86.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 29th. The credit services provider reported $4.76 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.24 by $0.52. Mastercard had a net margin of 45.65% and a return on equity of 203.92%. The company had revenue of $8.81 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.80 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $3.82 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 17.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Mastercard will post 15.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal 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 issued a $0.87 dividend. 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. This is a positive change from Mastercard’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.76. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio is presently 21.07%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. LGT Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Mastercard during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Evolution Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the second quarter worth approximately $29,000. IMG Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the second quarter worth $31,000. Robbins Farley lifted its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 50.0% during the third quarter. Robbins Farley now owns 54 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 18 shares during the period. Finally, Tacita Capital Inc grew its position in Mastercard by 50.0% in the 3rd quarter. Tacita Capital Inc now owns 57 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 19 shares during the last quarter. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Trending Headlines about Mastercard

Here are the key news stories impacting Mastercard this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 earnings beat — Mastercard reported stronger‑than‑expected EPS and revenue, with growth in gross dollar volume, cross‑border spending and cybersecurity/value‑added services, supporting the case for durable revenue growth. Zacks Q4 Coverage
• Positive Sentiment: Macquarie raised its price target to $675 and kept an “outperform” rating — another vote of confidence that supports upside expectations. Benzinga
• Positive Sentiment: TD Cowen nudged its target higher to $671 and maintains a “buy” — adds to the cluster of bullish analyst views following the print. Benzinga
• Positive Sentiment: RBC reaffirmed its “outperform” rating with a $656 target — another supportive analyst anchor above the current price. TickerReport
• Neutral Sentiment: JPMorgan trimmed its target from $685 to $655 but kept an “overweight” rating — slightly less bullish upside than before, but still constructive overall. Benzinga
• Neutral Sentiment: Management outlined strategic moves into agentic commerce and stablecoins — promising long‑term optionality but uncertain near‑term revenue impact. PYMNTS
• Negative Sentiment: Mastercard will cut about 4% of full‑time employees after a business review — a near‑term cost action that can boost margins but may signal internal pressure or slower growth in some areas. Reuters
• Negative Sentiment: Regulatory and sector risk commentary (including discussion of potential card legislation and broader sector headwinds) adds uncertainty to valuation and investor risk appetite. BNN Bloomberg

Mastercard Company Profile

Mastercard Incorporated is a global payments technology company that operates a network connecting consumers, financial institutions, merchants, governments and businesses in more than 200 countries and territories. The company facilitates electronic payments and transaction processing for credit, debit and prepaid card products carrying the Mastercard brand, while also providing a range of payment-related services to issuers, acquirers and merchants. Its technology and network enable authorization, clearing and settlement of payments and support a broad set of use cases including point-of-sale, e-commerce and mobile payments.

Beyond core transaction processing, Mastercard offers a suite of value-added services such as fraud and risk management, identity and authentication tools, tokenization and digital wallet support, cross-border and commercial payment solutions, and data analytics and consulting services for merchants and financial partners.