Applied Finance Capital Management LLC Raises Stock Position in Mastercard Incorporated $MA

Applied Finance Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 24.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 56,014 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 10,879 shares during the period. Mastercard comprises approximately 2.3% of Applied Finance Capital Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 11th biggest holding. Applied Finance Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $31,977,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 820.0% during the 4th quarter. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. now owns 46 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 41 shares during the period. Foster Dykema Cabot & Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 250.0% during the 3rd quarter. Foster Dykema Cabot & Partners LLC now owns 56 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 40 shares in the last quarter. Tacita Capital Inc lifted its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 50.0% during the 3rd quarter. Tacita Capital Inc now owns 57 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 19 shares in the last quarter. Bay Harbor Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in Mastercard by 54.1% in the 4th quarter. Bay Harbor Wealth Management LLC now owns 57 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Birchbrook Inc. acquired a new position in Mastercard in the 4th quarter worth $37,000. 97.28% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on MA. Cantor Fitzgerald upgraded shares of Mastercard to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 27th. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $656.00 to $629.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Tigress Financial boosted their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $730.00 to $735.00 and gave the company a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, March 13th. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $739.00 price objective on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $660.00 to $668.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-one have assigned a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Mastercard has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $656.00.

Key Headlines Impacting Mastercard

Here are the key news stories impacting Mastercard this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Mastercard is expanding into emerging “agentic commerce” and AI-driven payments through its PhotonPay partnership, which could support future transaction growth and strengthen its role in next-generation payment infrastructure. Can Mastercard Ride the Agentic Commerce Wave With PhotonPay?
• Positive Sentiment: PhotonPay said it completed its first live agentic payment with Mastercard, reinforcing the company’s early positioning in AI-enabled financial rails and secure autonomous transactions. PhotonPay Completes its First Live Agentic Payment Together with Mastercard
• Positive Sentiment: Mastercard and BMONI launched multi-currency payment cards in Nigeria, a sign of continued international expansion and efforts to deepen card usage in growth markets. Mastercard, BMONI launch multi-currency payment cards in Nigeria
• Neutral Sentiment: Mastercard’s recent earnings were strong, with revenue and EPS both beating expectations, but investors are weighing that against a premium valuation and a recent stock pullback. Assessing Mastercard (MA) Valuation After Recent Share Price Weakness And Premium P/E Multiple
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst commentary suggests the recent dip below $500 may be an attractive entry point for long-term holders, but near-term headwinds could persist before growth re-accelerates later in 2026. Mastercard: The Dip Below $500 Is A Gift For Long-Term Investors (Rating Upgrade)
• Negative Sentiment: A U.S. inquiry into Brazil’s PIX system raises concerns that instant-payment rails could bypass card networks like Mastercard and pressure cross-border transaction volumes over time. U.S. PIX Inquiry Puts Mastercard Growth And Valuation In Focus

Mastercard Price Performance

NYSE:MA opened at $493.41 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $503.29 and its 200 day moving average price is $531.59. The firm has a market cap of $435.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.55, a PEG ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 0.76. Mastercard Incorporated has a 52-week low of $480.50 and a 52-week high of $601.77. The company has a quick ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.56.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The credit services provider reported $4.60 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.41 by $0.19. Mastercard had a net margin of 45.88% and a return on equity of 212.96%. The business had revenue of $8.40 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.26 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $3.73 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 15.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Mastercard Incorporated will post 19.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.