Mastercard (NYSE:MA) Shares Up 0.7%

Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)’s stock price rose 0.7% during mid-day trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $470.53 and last traded at $469.93. Approximately 389,198 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 84% from the average daily volume of 2,456,721 shares. The stock had previously closed at $466.44.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $536.00 to $524.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 2nd. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on shares of Mastercard from $500.00 to $526.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. BNP Paribas upgraded Mastercard to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 25th. Bank of America cut Mastercard from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their target price for the company from $505.00 to $480.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 10th. Finally, Barclays raised their price target on Mastercard from $530.00 to $536.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, August 5th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-one have issued a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Mastercard has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $512.09.

Mastercard Stock Down 0.7 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.95, a current ratio of 1.14 and a quick ratio of 1.09. The stock has a market cap of $438.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.82 and a beta of 1.09. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $451.64 and its 200 day moving average is $458.70.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 9th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, July 9th were issued a dividend of $0.66 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, July 9th. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.56%. Mastercard’s payout ratio is 20.99%.

Insider Activity at Mastercard

In other news, major shareholder Foundation Mastercard sold 110,000 shares of Mastercard stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $441.43, for a total value of $48,557,300.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 94,014,308 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $41,500,735,980.44. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Mastercard news, insider Raj Seshadri sold 3,464 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $447.84, for a total value of $1,551,317.76. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 13,736 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,151,530.24. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, major shareholder Foundation Mastercard sold 110,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $441.43, for a total value of $48,557,300.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 94,014,308 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $41,500,735,980.44. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 1,620,959 shares of company stock worth $732,931,226. 0.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Mastercard

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of MA. Altshuler Shaham Ltd purchased a new position in Mastercard in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. VitalStone Financial LLC lifted its stake in shares of Mastercard by 300.0% in the fourth quarter. VitalStone Financial LLC now owns 60 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. Westend Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Mastercard in the first quarter valued at about $27,000. Palisade Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in Mastercard during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Finally, Scarborough Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Mastercard during the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. 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.