MasterCard (MA) Rises But Trails Market: What Investors Should Know

Company Performance - MasterCard's stock closed at $491.27, reflecting a +0.37% change from the previous trading day's closing, which is less than the S&P 500's daily gain of 0.4% [1] - Over the past month, MasterCard shares gained 3.74%, lagging behind the Business Services sector's gain of 4.05% but outpacing the S&P 500's gain of 1.71% [1] - The upcoming earnings disclosure is anticipated to show an EPS of $3.72, indicating a 9.73% growth compared to the same quarter last year, with a revenue forecast of $7.24 billion, reflecting a 10.8% growth year-over-year [1] Full Year Estimates - For the full year, analysts expect earnings of $14.29 per share and revenue of $27.92 billion, marking changes of +16.56% and +11.23% respectively from the previous year [2] - Recent changes to analyst estimates are crucial as they reflect shifting business dynamics, with positive revisions indicating confidence in MasterCard's performance [2] Valuation Metrics - MasterCard has a Forward P/E ratio of 34.24, which is a premium compared to the industry's average Forward P/E of 16.39 [3] - The company has a PEG ratio of 1.93, higher than the average PEG ratio of 1.25 for the Financial Transaction Services industry [3] Industry Context - The Financial Transaction Services industry is part of the Business Services sector and currently holds a Zacks Industry Rank of 56, placing it in the top 23% of all industries [4] - The Zacks Industry Rank measures the strength of industry groups, indicating that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1 [4]