Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA – Get Free Report) has been given a consensus rating of “Buy” by the thirty-one brokerages that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, twenty-five have assigned a buy recommendation and five have issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $666.64.
A number of research analysts recently commented on MA shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on shares of Mastercard from $665.00 to $685.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Piper Sandler assumed coverage on Mastercard in a report on Monday, June 29th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $597.00 price objective for the company. Wolfe Research upped their target price on Mastercard from $680.00 to $740.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 25th. Clear Str upgraded Mastercard to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “buy” rating and set a $701.00 price target on shares of Mastercard in a report on Thursday, July 30th.
Read Our Latest Stock Report on Mastercard
Mastercard News Summary
- Positive Sentiment: AI-commerce leadership could create a new growth channel. Mastercard and Danske Bank completed Denmark’s first AI-agent payment over live card rails, while Mastercard is also working with Alchemy to embed virtual cards in shopping agents. If automated purchasing scales, Mastercard could benefit from additional transaction volume and network relevance. Mastercard and Danske Bank complete Denmark’s first AI agent payment on live card rails
- Positive Sentiment: Stablecoin settlement is moving into live commercial use. SoFi has begun migrating its Mastercard card program to SoFiUSD settlement, potentially covering approximately $25 billion in annualized volume. The arrangement may reduce settlement friction and position Mastercard as an important bridge between traditional cards and blockchain-based payment rails, although the $25 billion figure is a projection rather than confirmed processed volume. Mastercard Goes Live With SoFiUSD Settlement for $25 Billion Card Program
- Positive Sentiment: Mastercard is positioning its network for small-business digitization. Initiatives linking artificial intelligence, cybersecurity and SME growth could support adoption of Mastercard’s payment and fraud-prevention services. A new peer-to-peer tool using Mastercard and Visa infrastructure also expands the usefulness of open payment rails. How Mastercard is Linking SME Growth, AI and Cybersecurity
- Neutral Sentiment: Holiday spending is expected to be strong, but the quality of growth is a concern. Mastercard’s economist projects robust holiday sales, while noting that inflation and higher prices may account for much of the increase. That could limit the benefit to real transaction volumes and earnings. Mastercard Economist Reveals the Uncomfortable Truth Behind Rosy Holiday Sales Numbers
- Negative Sentiment: Agentic commerce introduces authorization, fraud and liability risks. Banks and merchants remain uncertain about who is responsible when an AI agent makes an unauthorized purchase. Extra controls could raise the cost of automated transactions and pressure Mastercard’s fee model. Mastercard Gains as Banks Challenge Agentic-Commerce Guardrails
- Negative Sentiment: Mastercard faces a $167.5 million ATM-fee settlement. Potential consumer payments and legal costs are a modest overhang, though the financial impact appears limited relative to Mastercard’s scale. ATM fee settlement
Insider Transactions at Mastercard
In other news, insider Sachin Mehra sold 7,444 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $577.13, for a total value of $4,296,155.72. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 40,916 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $23,613,851.08. The trade was a 15.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Linda Kirkpatrick sold 4,280 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $570.31, for a total transaction of $2,440,926.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 31,179 shares in the company, valued at $17,781,695.49. This trade represents a 12.07% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 74,623 shares of company stock valued at $42,544,606. Corporate insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.
Institutional Trading of Mastercard
Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of MA. State Street Corp boosted its stake in shares of Mastercard by 1.3% in the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 36,964,305 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $18,984,867,000 after buying an additional 486,283 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Mastercard by 1.7% during 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 acquiring an additional 349,369 shares during the period. Capital International Investors raised its holdings in Mastercard by 4.4% in the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 17,964,658 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $10,256,368,000 after acquiring an additional 759,584 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Mastercard in the 4th quarter valued at $6,705,708,000. Finally, Capital Research Global Investors lifted its position in shares of Mastercard by 4.3% during the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 10,791,976 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $6,161,003,000 after acquiring an additional 444,142 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.28% of the company’s stock.
Mastercard Stock Up 1.0%
MA opened at $565.51 on Tuesday. Mastercard has a 1-year low of $464.52 and a 1-year high of $601.23. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $569.06 and its 200 day simple moving average is $526.45. The company has a current ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.96. The stock has a market cap of $495.39 billion, a PE ratio of 31.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.59 and a beta of 0.74.
Mastercard (NYSE:MA – Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 30th. The credit services provider reported $5.04 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.77 by $0.27. The firm had revenue of $9.28 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.08 billion. Mastercard had a net margin of 46.34% and a return on equity of 239.99%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $4.15 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that Mastercard will post 19.9 earnings per share for the current year.
About Mastercard
Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE: MA) is a global technology company that operates a payments network connecting consumers, financial institutions, merchants, governments and businesses. The company facilitates electronic payment transactions, including credit, debit, prepaid and commercial payments, by providing the infrastructure used to authorize, clear and settle transactions.
Mastercard’s products and services include its Mastercard-branded payment cards, digital payment tools, contactless payment technology and payment solutions for businesses and governments.
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