Mastercard (NYSE:MA) Rating Lowered to Hold at Freedom Broker

Mastercard (NYSE:MA - Get Free Report) was downgraded by Freedom Broker from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note issued to investors on Thursday, MarketBeat.com reports. They presently have a $725.00 price objective on the credit services provider's stock, up from their previous price objective of $620.00. Freedom Broker's target price suggests a potential upside of 10.58% from the company's current price.

Several other brokerages have also issued reports on MA. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $701.00 target price (up from $674.00) on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. BNP Paribas Exane lifted their price target on shares of Mastercard from $680.00 to $713.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Piper Sandler boosted their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $597.00 to $710.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, July 31st. Clear Str raised shares of Mastercard to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. Finally, Wolfe Research increased their target price on shares of Mastercard from $680.00 to $740.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 25th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty have issued a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $704.62.

Mastercard Stock Down 2.5%

MA opened at $655.61 on Thursday. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $591.91 and its 200 day simple moving average is $538.51. Mastercard has a 52 week low of $464.52 and a 52 week high of $681.99. The company has a quick ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.29. The stock has a market cap of $574.32 billion, a PE ratio of 34.29, a P/E/G ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 0.78.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 29th. The credit services provider reported $5.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.17 by $0.14. Mastercard had a return on equity of 260.86% and a net margin of 46.73%. The firm had revenue of $9.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.66 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $4.38 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 14.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts expect that Mastercard will post 19.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Mastercard news, CFO Ling Hai sold 4,318 shares of Mastercard stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $642.43, for a total value of $2,774,012.74. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 35,750 shares of the company's stock, valued at $22,966,872.50. The trade was a 10.78% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Julius Genachowski sold 371 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $585.01, for a total value of $217,038.71. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 8,607 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,035,181.07. The trade was a 4.13% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 25,403 shares of company stock valued at $15,428,736 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.09% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Mastercard

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Robinswood Financial LLC purchased a new position in shares of Mastercard in the first quarter valued at $25,000. Next Level Wealth Planning LLC bought a new stake in Mastercard in the third quarter worth $31,000. Allied Private Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in Mastercard during the second quarter valued at $34,000. IMG Wealth Management Inc. raised its stake in Mastercard by 58.7% during the third quarter. IMG Wealth Management Inc. now owns 73 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 27 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Premier Financial Group bought a new position in Mastercard during the second quarter valued at $39,000. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Key Headlines Impacting Mastercard

Here are the key news stories impacting Mastercard this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Truist raised its price target to $735 from $674 and reiterated a Buy rating, implying further upside from the price cited in the report. Truist raises Mastercard price target
• Positive Sentiment: Mastercard is expanding acceptance and payment options through new card offerings with Sampath Bank in Sri Lanka and Samsung Pay in Morocco. These partnerships could support wider use of its network, though their near-term financial contribution is unclear. Sampath Bank and Mastercard card partnership Mastercard and Samsung Pay in Morocco
• Neutral Sentiment: The CFO sold about $2.77 million of Mastercard shares. Insider sales can draw investor attention, but the reports provide no indication that the sale reflects a change in the company’s outlook; two articles appear to report the same transaction. Mastercard CFO stock sale
• Negative Sentiment: Visa and Mastercard face an additional £5 billion in collective claims over card fees, adding to legal and regulatory uncertainty around the companies’ fee practices. Additional card-fee claims against Visa and Mastercard
• Negative Sentiment: Valuation coverage cautions that Mastercard’s recent rally has largely reflected a higher earnings multiple, with analyst profit estimates barely changing after its Q3 report. That may leave the stock more vulnerable if growth or sentiment disappoints; analyst views remain divided, with some targets above the market and one cited Hold rating at $535. Mastercard valuation after its rally Analyst views on Mastercard after Q3

About Mastercard

Mastercard Incorporated is a global payments technology company that operates a network connecting consumers, merchants, financial institutions, businesses and governments. Its network supports electronic payments, including transactions made with Mastercard-branded credit, debit and prepaid cards, as well as digital payment methods.

The company provides technology for authorizing, clearing and settling transactions. It also offers services related to cybersecurity, identity verification, data analytics, fraud prevention and payment consulting.