Mastercard (NYSE:MA) Price Target Raised to $670.00 at Susquehanna

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) had its target price upped by analysts at Susquehanna from $605.00 to $670.00 in a report issued on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a “positive” rating on the credit services provider’s stock. Susquehanna’s target price would indicate a potential upside of 19.72% from the stock’s previous close.

Several other analysts have also recently commented on MA. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their target price on shares of Mastercard from $510.00 to $580.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Mastercard from $564.00 to $654.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Oppenheimer lowered their price target on Mastercard from $591.00 to $588.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $590.00 to $610.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 9th. Finally, Mizuho lifted their price target on shares of Mastercard from $496.00 to $532.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $569.58.

Mastercard Stock Performance

MA stock opened at $559.66 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $513.67 billion, a PE ratio of 42.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.17 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.36, a current ratio of 1.29 and a quick ratio of 1.29. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $527.58 and a 200 day moving average price of $500.25. Mastercard has a fifty-two week low of $428.86 and a fifty-two week high of $576.94.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The credit services provider reported $3.82 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.71 by $0.11. Mastercard had a return on equity of 178.27% and a net margin of 45.26%. Analysts forecast that Mastercard will post 14.47 EPS for the current year.

Mastercard declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, December 17th that authorizes the company to repurchase $12.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the credit services provider to purchase up to 2.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Mastercard

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in Mastercard by 0.7% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 35,288,912 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $17,425,665,000 after purchasing an additional 257,312 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC grew its holdings in Mastercard by 3.4% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 21,355,081 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $10,545,139,000 after buying an additional 700,769 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in Mastercard by 2.5% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 18,375,053 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $9,043,972,000 after buying an additional 453,773 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 120,665.3% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 8,041,758 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $3,971,020,000 after buying an additional 8,035,099 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its position in shares of Mastercard by 4.2% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 7,501,814 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $3,800,836,000 after acquiring an additional 304,293 shares during the period. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Mastercard

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.