Erste Group Bank Increases Earnings Estimates for Mastercard

Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) – Investment analysts at Erste Group Bank increased their FY2027 EPS estimates for shares of Mastercard in a report issued on Wednesday, August 5th. Erste Group Bank analyst H. Engel now anticipates that the credit services provider will earn $23.03 per share for the year, up from their previous forecast of $22.85. The consensus estimate for Mastercard’s current full-year earnings is $19.81 per share.

Several other research firms have also commented on MA. Clear Str upgraded shares of Mastercard to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 16th. Citigroup lowered their price target on shares of Mastercard from $735.00 to $675.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 14th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Tuesday, July 21st. Raymond James Financial reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $632.00 price objective on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Finally, Truist Financial raised their price target on shares of Mastercard from $554.00 to $633.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-four have issued a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Mastercard presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $661.93.

Mastercard Stock Performance

Mastercard stock opened at $561.79 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.96, a current ratio of 1.06 and a quick ratio of 1.06. Mastercard has a 12 month low of $464.52 and a 12 month high of $601.77. The company has a market cap of $492.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.71. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $523.68 and its 200-day moving average is $515.45.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The credit services provider reported $5.04 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.77 by $0.27. The company had revenue of $9.28 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.08 billion. Mastercard had a net margin of 46.34% and a return on equity of 239.99%. Mastercard’s revenue was up 14.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $4.15 earnings per share.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Mastercard

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of MA. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 79,897,854 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $45,612,087,000 after purchasing an additional 466,514 shares during the period. J. Stern & Co. LLP boosted its holdings in Mastercard by 53,535.0% in the fourth quarter. J. Stern & Co. LLP now owns 72,597,097 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $41,444,231,000 after purchasing an additional 72,461,743 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 2.8% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 36,580,374 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $20,807,283,000 after acquiring an additional 997,536 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Mastercard by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 20,686,605 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $11,773,153,000 after purchasing an additional 349,369 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Capital International Investors increased its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 4.4% during the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 17,964,658 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $10,256,368,000 after purchasing an additional 759,584 shares during the period. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Mastercard

In other Mastercard news, insider Sandra A. Arkell sold 200 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, July 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $540.00, for a total value of $108,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 3,322 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,793,880. This represents a 5.68% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Raj Seshadri sold 4,828 shares of Mastercard stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $525.00, for a total value of $2,534,700.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 16,429 shares in the company, valued at $8,625,225. This represents a 22.71% 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 a total of 62,913 shares of company stock valued at $35,769,036 in the last 90 days. 0.09% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 7th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 9th were given a $0.87 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 9th. This represents a $3.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.6%. Mastercard’s payout ratio is 19.14%.

Key Headlines Impacting Mastercard

Here are the key news stories impacting Mastercard this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Stablecoin infrastructure: Mastercard’s efforts to support stablecoin infrastructure could position the network to capture transactions involving blockchain-based payments and digital assets. The initiative may create new revenue opportunities as stablecoins gain wider commercial use. How Mastercard is boosting stablecoin infrastructure
• Positive Sentiment: Higher earnings outlook: Erste Group Bank raised its FY2027 Mastercard EPS forecast to $23.03 from $22.85. The increase signals improving confidence in the company’s long-term earnings growth, although the estimate is for a later fiscal year than the current consensus forecast of $19.81.
• Positive Sentiment: Expanded payment and financing partnerships: Synchrony and PayPal extended special financing for PayPal Credit Card holders across Mastercard’s global acceptance network, including online and in-store purchases. Greater card usage could support Mastercard’s transaction volumes and network revenue. Synchrony and PayPal Bring Special Financing to Entire Mastercard Network
• Positive Sentiment: UAE expansion: Mastercard and Botim launched an all-in-one payment card in the United Arab Emirates, adding another product and distribution channel in a strategically important region. Botim, Mastercard launch all-in-one payment card in UAE

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.