Investors with a lot of money to spend have taken a bullish stance on Mastercard (NYSE:MA).

And retail traders should know.

We noticed this today when the positions showed up on publicly available options history that we track here at Benzinga.

Whether these are institutions or just wealthy individuals, we don't know. But when something this big happens with MA, it often means somebody knows something is about to happen.

Today, Benzinga's options scanner spotted 8 options trades for Mastercard.

This isn't normal.

The overall sentiment of these big-money traders is split between 37% bullish and 12%, bearish.

Out of all of the options we uncovered, there was 1 put, for a total amount of $169,440, and 7, calls, for a total amount of $424,743.

Projected Price Targets

Based on the trading activity, it appears that the significant investors are aiming for a price territory stretching from $400.0 to $500.0 for Mastercard over the recent three months.

Volume & Open Interest Development

Looking at the volume and open interest is a powerful move while trading options. This data can help you track the liquidity and interest for Mastercard's options for a given strike price. Below, we can observe the evolution of the volume and open interest of calls and puts, respectively, for all of Mastercard's whale trades within a strike price range from $400.0 to $500.0 in the last 30 days.

Mastercard Option Activity Analysis: Last 30 Days

Significant Options Trades Detected:

About Mastercard

Mastercard is the second-largest payment processor in the world, having processed close to over $9 trillion in volume during 2023. Mastercard operates in over 200 countries and processes transactions in over 150 currencies.

Following our analysis of the options activities associated with Mastercard, we pivot to a closer look at the company's own performance.

Where Is Mastercard Standing Right Now?

• Currently trading with a volume of 1,091,632, the MA's price is up by 2.28%, now at $439.39.
• RSI readings suggest the stock is currently is currently neutral between overbought and oversold.
• Anticipated earnings release is in 5 days.

What Analysts Are Saying About Mastercard

Over the past month, 2 industry analysts have shared their insights on this stock, proposing an average target price of $490.0.

• An analyst from JP Morgan has decided to maintain their Overweight rating on Mastercard, which currently sits at a price target of $500.
• An analyst from B of A Securities downgraded its action to Neutral with a price target of $480.

Options are a riskier asset compared to just trading the stock, but they have higher profit potential. Serious options traders manage this risk by educating themselves daily, scaling in and out of trades, following more than one indicator, and following the markets closely.