Heartland Payment Systems (HPY) Settles With Mastercard (MA)

William Blair & Company analysts Christopher Shutler and Jeremy Frazer maintained their Market Perform rating for shares of Heartland Payment Systems Inc HPY. The analysts noted that Heartland Payment Systems Inc had reached a $41.4 million settlement with Mastercard Incorporated MA and that a smaller settlement with Discover Financial Services DFS may follow. Although the settlement was widely anticipated, they still saw it as a positive development for the company. The William Blair & Company analysts wrote, "we view this as a positive event for the company, although we believe investors have widely anticipated a settlement with MasterCard in this dollar range since the Visa settlement was announced back in January. Total settlements to date now equal approximately $107 million, including $60 million for Visa, $3.6 million for American Express, $2.4 million for the consumer class-action lawsuit, and now $41.4 million for MasterCard."