How to buy Mastercard shares

Mastercard Incorporated is a credit services business with stocks listed in the US. Mastercard shares (MA) are listed on the NYSE and all prices are listed in US Dollars. Here's how to invest if you're based in Australia.

How to buy shares in Mastercard

1. Compare share trading platforms. To buy shares in a US company from Australia you'll need to find a trading platform that offers access to US stock markets. If you're just starting out, look for a platform with low brokerage and foreign exchange fees.
2. Open and fund your brokerage account. Complete an application with your personal and financial details, like your ID and tax file number. Fund your account with a bank transfer, credit card or debit card.
3. Search for Mastercard. Find the share 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 reaches your desired price. To spread out your risk, look into dollar-cost averaging, which smooths out buying at consistent intervals and amounts.
5. Decide on how many to buy. Weigh your budget against a diversified portfolio that can minimise risk through the market's ups and downs. You may be able to buy a fractional share of Mastercard, depending on your broker.
6. Check in on your investment. Congratulations, you own a part of Mastercard. Optimise 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.

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Mastercard share price

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

Mastercard shares at a glance

• Key figures

Information last updated 2021-02-23.

52-week range	US$198.9308 - US$366.3585
50-day moving average	US$335.9632
200-day moving average	US$334.9125
Target price	US$384.42
PE ratio	54.7677
Dividend yield	US$1.64 (0.48%)
Earnings per share (TTM)	US$6.37

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The value of your investments can fall as well as rise and you may get back less than you invested. Past performance is no indication of future results.

Is it a good time to buy Mastercard 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

Is Mastercard under- or over-valued?

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

Mastercard's P/E ratio

Mastercard's current share price divided by its per-share earnings (EPS) over a 12-month period gives a "trailing price/earnings ratio" of roughly 55x. In other words, Mastercard shares trade at around 55x 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's PEG ratio

Mastercard's "price/earnings-to-growth ratio" can be calculated by dividing its P/E ratio by its growth – to give 1.7631. 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'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's EBITDA

Mastercard's EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation) is US$8.7 billion (£6.2 billion).

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

Mastercard financials

Revenue TTM	US$15.3 billion
Operating margin TTM	53.34%
Gross profit TTM	US$15.3 billion
Return on assets TTM	16.24%
Return on equity TTM	102.51%
Profit margin	41.9%
Book value	6.423
Market capitalisation	US$346.6 billion

TTM: trailing 12 months

Shorting Mastercard shares

There are currently 5.8 million Mastercard shares held short by investors – that's known as Mastercard's "short interest". This figure is 50.3% up from 3.9 million last month.

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

Mastercard's "short interest ratio" (SIR)

Mastercard's "short interest ratio" (SIR) is the quantity of Mastercard shares currently shorted divided by the average quantity of Mastercard shares traded daily (recently around 4.7 million). Mastercard's SIR currently stands at 1.22. In other words for every 100,000 Mastercard shares traded daily on the market, roughly 1220 shares are currently held short.

However Mastercard's short interest can also be evaluated against the total number of Mastercard shares, or, against the total number of tradable Mastercard shares (the shares that aren't held by "insiders" or major long-term shareholders – also known as the "float"). In this case Mastercard's short interest could be expressed as 0.01% of the outstanding shares (for every 100,000 Mastercard shares in existence, roughly 10 shares are currently held short) or 0.0066% of the tradable shares (for every 100,000 tradable Mastercard shares, roughly 7 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.

Find out more about how you can short Mastercard stock.

Mastercard'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.

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

Mastercard'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'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 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's environmental score

Environmental score: 2.06/100

Mastercard'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 is a leader in its sector terms of its environmental impact, and exposed to a lower level of risk.

Mastercard's social score

Social score: 8.68/100

Mastercard'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 is a leader in its sector when it comes to taking good care of its workforce and the communities it impacts.

Mastercard's governance score

Governance score: 9.88/100

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

Mastercard's controversy score

Controversy score: 4/5

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

Dividend payout ratio: 25.51% of net profits

Recently Mastercard has paid out, on average, around 25.51% of net profits as dividends. That has enabled analysts to estimate a "forward annual dividend yield" of 0.52% of the current stock value. This means that over a year, based on recent payouts (which are sadly no guarantee of future payouts), Mastercard shareholders could enjoy a 0.52% return on their shares, in the form of dividend payments. In Mastercard's case, that would currently equate to about $1.64 per share.

While Mastercard's payout ratio might seem fairly standard, it's worth remembering that Mastercard may be investing much of the rest of its net profits in future growth.

Mastercard's most recent dividend payout was on 7 May 2021. The latest dividend was paid out to all shareholders who bought their shares by 8 April 2021 (the "ex-dividend date").

Have Mastercard's shares ever split?

Mastercard'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 shares – just the quantity. However, indirectly, the new 90% lower share price could have impacted the market appetite for Mastercard shares which in turn could have impacted Mastercard's share price.

Mastercard share price volatility

Over the last 12 months, Mastercard's shares have ranged in value from as little as US$198.9308 up to US$366.3585. 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's is 1.1852. This would suggest that Mastercard'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 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. Mastercard has partnership with NMI and Global Payments Inc. to launch its first live cloud tap on phone pilot with computer engineering group.

Frequently asked questions

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

  Currently 11.513% of Mastercard shares are held by insiders and 77.395% by institutions.

• When does the fiscal year end for Mastercard?

  Mastercard's fiscal year ends in December.

• Where is Mastercard based?

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

• What is Mastercard's ISIN number?

  Mastercard's international securities identification number is: US57636Q1040

• What is Mastercard's CUSIP number?

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