How to buy Mastercard Incorporated stock | 333.6

Mastercard Incorporated is a credit services business based in the US. Mastercard Incorporated shares (MA) are listed on the NYSE and all prices are listed in US Dollars. Mastercard Incorporated employs 18,600 staff and has a trailing 12-month revenue of around USD$15.6 billion.

How to buy shares in Mastercard Incorporated

1. Compare share trading platforms. If you're a beginner, look for a platform with low commissions, expert ratings and investment tools to track your portfolio. Narrow down top brands with our comparison table.
2. Open and fund your brokerage account. Complete an application with your personal and financial details, like your ID and bank information. Fund your account with a bank transfer, credit card or debit card.
3. Search for Mastercard Incorporated. Find the stock by name or ticker symbol: MA. Research its history to confirm it's a solid investment against your financial goals.
4. Purchase now or later. Buy today with a market order or use a limit order to delay your purchase until Mastercard Incorporated reaches your desired price. To spread out your purchase, look into dollar-cost averaging, which smooths out buying at consistent intervals and amounts.
5. Decide on how many to buy. At last close price of USD$333.6, weigh your budget against a diversified portfolio that can minimize risk through the market's ups and downs. You may be able to buy a fractional share of Mastercard Incorporated, depending on your broker.
6. Check in on your investment. Congratulations, you own a part of Mastercard Incorporated. Optimize your portfolio by tracking how your stock — and even the business — performs with an eye on the long term. You may be eligible for dividends and shareholder voting rights on directors and management that can affect your stock.

How has coronavirus impacted Mastercard Incorporated's share price?

Since the stock market crash in March caused by coronavirus, Mastercard Incorporated's share price has had significant negative movement.

Its last market close was USD$333.6, which is 1.80% down on its pre-crash value of USD$339.7 and 66.81% up on the lowest point reached during the March crash when the shares fell as low as USD$199.99.

If you had bought USD$1,000 worth of Mastercard Incorporated shares at the start of February 2020, those shares would have been worth USD$626.16 at the bottom of the March crash, and if you held on to them, then as of the last market close they'd be worth USD$1,027.49.

Mastercard Incorporated share price

Use our graph to track the performance of MA stocks over time.

Mastercard Incorporated shares at a glance

• Key figures

Information last updated 2020-11-25.

Latest market close	USD$333.6
52-week range	USD$199.183 - USD$366.8229
50-day moving average	USD$327.8553
200-day moving average	USD$318.9099
Wall St. target price	USD$356.29
PE ratio	50.3048
Dividend yield	USD$1.6 (0.47%)
Earnings per share (TTM)	USD$6.663

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Is it a good time to buy Mastercard Incorporated stock?

The technical analysis gauge below displays real-time ratings for the timeframes you select. This is not a recommendation, however. It represents a technical analysis based on the most popular technical indicators: Moving Averages, Oscillators and Pivots. Finder might not concur and takes no responsibility.

Technical Analysis of Mastercard Incorporated by TradingView

This chart is not advice or a guarantee of success. Rather, it gauges the real-time recommendations of three popular technical indicators: moving averages, oscillators and pivots. Finder is not responsible for how your stock performs.

Mastercard Incorporated price performance over time

Historical closes compared with the close of $333.6 from 2020-10-22

1 week (2020-11-19)	-0.08%
1 month (2020-10-29)	13.79%
3 months (2020-08-28)	-8.88%
6 months (2020-05-29)	10.87%

1 year (2019-11-29)	14.16%
2 years (2018-11-29)	69.63%
3 years (2017-11-29)	124.87%
5 years (2015-11-27)	238.10%

Is Mastercard Incorporated under- or over-valued?

Valuing Mastercard Incorporated stock is incredibly difficult, and any metric has to be viewed as part of a bigger picture of Mastercard Incorporated's overall performance. However, analysts commonly use some key metrics to help gauge the value of a stock.

Mastercard Incorporated's P/E ratio

Mastercard Incorporated's current share price divided by its per-share earnings (EPS) over a 12-month period gives a "trailing price/earnings ratio" of roughly 50x. In other words, Mastercard Incorporated shares trade at around 50x recent earnings.

That's relatively high compared to, say, the trailing 12-month P/E ratio for the NASDAQ 100 at the end of 2019 (27.29). The high P/E ratio could mean that investors are optimistic about the outlook for the shares or simply that they're over-valued.

Mastercard Incorporated's PEG ratio

Mastercard Incorporated's "price/earnings-to-growth ratio" can be calculated by dividing its P/E ratio by its growth – to give 1.8789. A low ratio can be interpreted as meaning the shares offer better value, while a higher ratio can be interpreted as meaning the shares offer worse value.

The PEG ratio provides a broader view than just the P/E ratio, as it gives more insight into Mastercard Incorporated's future profitability. By accounting for growth, it could also help you if you're comparing the share prices of multiple high-growth companies.

Mastercard Incorporated's EBITDA

Mastercard Incorporated's EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation) is USD$9 billion.

The EBITDA is a measure of a Mastercard Incorporated's overall financial performance and is widely used to measure a its profitability.

Mastercard Incorporated financials

Revenue TTM	USD$15.6 billion
Operating margin TTM	54.2%
Gross profit TTM	USD$16.9 billion
Return on assets TTM	18.35%
Return on equity TTM	123.07%
Profit margin	43.13%
Book value	$5.81
Market capitalisation	USD$341.3 billion

TTM: trailing 12 months

Shorting Mastercard Incorporated shares

There are currently 5.4 million Mastercard Incorporated shares held short by investors – that's known as Mastercard Incorporated's "short interest". This figure is 13.5% up from 4.8 million last month.

There are a few different ways that this level of interest in shorting Mastercard Incorporated shares can be evaluated.

Mastercard Incorporated's "short interest ratio" (SIR)

Mastercard Incorporated's "short interest ratio" (SIR) is the quantity of Mastercard Incorporated shares currently shorted divided by the average quantity of Mastercard Incorporated shares traded daily (recently around 4.5 million). Mastercard Incorporated's SIR currently stands at 1.2. In other words for every 100,000 Mastercard Incorporated shares traded daily on the market, roughly 1200 shares are currently held short.

However Mastercard Incorporated's short interest can also be evaluated against the total number of Mastercard Incorporated shares, or, against the total number of tradable Mastercard Incorporated shares (the shares that aren't held by "insiders" or major long-term shareholders – also known as the "float"). In this case Mastercard Incorporated's short interest could be expressed as 0.01% of the outstanding shares (for every 100,000 Mastercard Incorporated shares in existence, roughly 10 shares are currently held short) or 0.0062% of the tradable shares (for every 100,000 tradable Mastercard Incorporated shares, roughly 6 shares are currently held short).

Such a low SIR usually points to an optimistic outlook for the share price, with fewer people currently willing to bet against Mastercard Incorporated.

Find out more about how you can short Mastercard Incorporated stock.

Mastercard Incorporated's environmental, social and governance track record

Environmental, social and governance (known as ESG) criteria are a set of three factors used to measure the sustainability and social impact of companies like Mastercard Incorporated.

When it comes to ESG scores, lower is better, and lower scores are generally associated with lower risk for would-be investors.

Mastercard Incorporated's total ESG risk score

Total ESG risk: 20.62

Socially conscious investors use ESG scores to screen how an investment aligns with their worldview, and Mastercard Incorporated's overall score of 20.62 (as at 01/01/2019) is excellent – landing it in it in the 15th percentile of companies rated in the same sector.

ESG scores are increasingly used to estimate the level of risk a company like Mastercard Incorporated is exposed to within the areas of "environmental" (carbon footprint, resource use etc.), "social" (health and safety, human rights etc.), and "governance" (anti-corruption, tax transparency etc.).

Mastercard Incorporated's environmental score

Environmental score: 2.06/100

Mastercard Incorporated's environmental score of 2.06 puts it squarely in the 5th percentile of companies rated in the same sector. This could suggest that Mastercard Incorporated is a leader in its sector terms of its environmental impact, and exposed to a lower level of risk.

Mastercard Incorporated's social score

Social score: 8.68/100

Mastercard Incorporated's social score of 8.68 puts it squarely in the 5th percentile of companies rated in the same sector. This could suggest that Mastercard Incorporated is a leader in its sector when it comes to taking good care of its workforce and the communities it impacts.

Mastercard Incorporated's governance score

Governance score: 9.88/100

Mastercard Incorporated's governance score puts it squarely in the 5th percentile of companies rated in the same sector. That could suggest that Mastercard Incorporated is a leader in its sector when it comes to responsible management and strategy, and exposed to a lower level of risk.

Mastercard Incorporated's controversy score

Controversy score: 4/5

ESG scores also evaluate any incidences of controversy that a company has been involved in. Mastercard Incorporated scored a 4 out of 5 for controversy – the second-lowest score possible, reflecting that Mastercard Incorporated has a damaged public profile.

Environmental, social, and governance (ESG) summary

Mastercard Incorporated was last rated for ESG on: 2019-01-01.

Total ESG score	20.62
Total ESG percentile	14.88
Environmental score	2.06
Environmental score percentile	5
Social score	8.68
Social score percentile	5
Governance score	9.88
Governance score percentile	5
Level of controversy	4

Mastercard Incorporated share dividends

Dividend payout ratio: 23.7% of net profits

Recently Mastercard Incorporated has paid out, on average, around 23.7% of net profits as dividends. That has enabled analysts to estimate a "forward annual dividend yield" of 0.47% of the current stock value. This means that over a year, based on recent payouts (which are sadly no guarantee of future payouts), Mastercard Incorporated shareholders could enjoy a 0.47% return on their shares, in the form of dividend payments. In Mastercard Incorporated's case, that would currently equate to about $1.6 per share.

While Mastercard Incorporated's payout ratio might seem low, this can signify that Mastercard Incorporated is investing more in its future growth.

Mastercard Incorporated's most recent dividend payout was on 9 November 2020. The latest dividend was paid out to all shareholders who bought their shares by 8 October 2020 (the "ex-dividend date").

Have Mastercard Incorporated's shares ever split?

Mastercard Incorporated's shares were split on a 10:1 basis on 22 January 2014. So if you had owned 1 share the day before before the split, the next day you'd have owned 10 shares. This wouldn't directly have changed the overall worth of your Mastercard Incorporated shares – just the quantity. However, indirectly, the new 90% lower share price could have impacted the market appetite for Mastercard Incorporated shares which in turn could have impacted Mastercard Incorporated's share price.

Mastercard Incorporated share price volatility

Over the last 12 months, Mastercard Incorporated's shares have ranged in value from as little as $199.183 up to $366.8229. A popular way to gauge a stock's volatility is its "beta".

Beta is a measure of a share's volatility in relation to the market. The market (NYSE average) beta is 1, while Mastercard Incorporated's is 1.1578. This would suggest that Mastercard Incorporated's shares are a little bit more volatile than the average for this exchange and represent, relatively-speaking, a slightly higher risk (but potentially also market-beating returns).

Mastercard Incorporated overview

Mastercard Incorporated, a technology company, provides transaction processing and other payment-related products and services in the United States and internationally. It facilitates the processing of payment transactions, including authorization, clearing, and settlement, as well as delivers related products and services. The company offers integrated products and services for account holders, merchants, financial institutions, 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 payment programs and management services; and commercial payment products and solutions. It also provides value-added products and services comprising cyber and intelligence products, information and analytics services, consulting services, loyalty and reward programs, processing services, and issuer and acquirer processing services. The company offers payment solutions and services under the MasterCard, Maestro, and Cirrus brands. The company was founded in 1966 and is headquartered in Purchase, New York.

Frequently asked questions

• What percentage of Mastercard Incorporated is owned by insiders or institutions?

  Currently 11.514% of Mastercard Incorporated shares are held by insiders and 77.451% by institutions.

• How many people work for Mastercard Incorporated?

  Latest data suggests 18,600 work at Mastercard Incorporated.

• When does the fiscal year end for Mastercard Incorporated?

  Mastercard Incorporated's fiscal year ends in December.

• Where is Mastercard Incorporated based?

  Mastercard Incorporated's address is: 2000 Purchase Street, Purchase, NY, United States, 10577

• What is Mastercard Incorporated's ISIN number?

  Mastercard Incorporated's international securities identification number is: US57636Q1040

• What is Mastercard Incorporated's CUSIP number?

  Mastercard Incorporated's Committee on Uniform Securities Identification Procedures number is: 57636Q104