Cantor Fitzgerald Upgrades Mastercard (NYSE:MA) to Strong-Buy

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) was upgraded by analysts at Cantor Fitzgerald to a “strong-buy” rating in a note issued to investors on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other research analysts have also recently weighed in on the company. UBS Group increased their price objective on Mastercard from $690.00 to $700.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 31st. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price target on shares of Mastercard from $645.00 to $654.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 31st. Redburn Partners set a $685.00 price objective on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Wednesday. Morgan Stanley set a $665.00 price objective on shares of Mastercard and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, October 31st. Finally, TD Cowen restated a “buy” rating on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Monday, January 12th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-one have assigned a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Mastercard currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $661.70.

Mastercard Trading Up 0.1%

Shares of MA stock opened at $521.18 on Tuesday. Mastercard has a 12-month low of $465.59 and a 12-month high of $601.77. The company has a market capitalization of $468.02 billion, a PE ratio of 33.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.76 and a beta of 0.86. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $554.28 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $564.58. The company has a quick ratio of 1.12, a current ratio of 1.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.40.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The credit services provider reported $4.38 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.31 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $8.60 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.53 billion. Mastercard had a return on equity of 202.03% and a net margin of 45.28%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 16.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $3.89 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that Mastercard will post 15.91 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Mastercard

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in Mastercard by 55,868.1% in the second quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 13,421,148 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $7,541,880,000 after acquiring an additional 13,397,168 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Mastercard in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $6,725,317,000. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 25.6% during the 2nd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 6,372,404 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $3,580,909,000 after purchasing an additional 1,299,977 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its stake in Mastercard by 2.8% in 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 purchasing an additional 997,536 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in Mastercard by 1.2% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 79,431,340 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $45,181,341,000 after buying an additional 955,533 shares in the last quarter. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Key Headlines Impacting Mastercard

Here are the key news stories impacting Mastercard this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Cantor Fitzgerald upgraded MA to a “strong-buy,” which supports near-term buying interest and lifts sentiment among institutional investors. Cantor Fitzgerald Upgrade
• Positive Sentiment: A Seeking Alpha analysis projects 13%–16.5% annual EPS growth through 2028 and estimates a fair value near $616, highlighting durable margin profile and long-term transaction growth that justify premium multiples. Mastercard: Just Keep Swiping
• Positive Sentiment: Mastercard is expanding agentic AI products and partnerships (banking/retail automation and an agent-led payments trial), which could drive new revenue streams and product differentiation over time. Mastercard Launches Agentic AI Suite
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst and media coverage (Zacks, Yahoo/Zacks analyst blog) is keeping MA in focus ahead of its quarterly report — expectations point to double-digit revenue and EPS growth but also note a stretched valuation. Is Mastercard Stock a Smart Bet Ahead of Q4?
• Neutral Sentiment: Multiple outlets note Mastercard’s high institutional ownership and strong profitability metrics — positive fundamentals but they also underpin the stock’s premium multiple and sensitivity to growth misses. Head-To-Head Analysis: Mastercard & Ryvyl
• Negative Sentiment: Competitive risk: Capital One’s acquisition activity (Brex) and broader bank consolidation/fintech push are cited as potential long-term competitive threats to card processors’ margins and volumes. Investors may price in this risk alongside premium valuation. Capital One Stock Weak After Earnings, Brex Deal in Focus

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.