Is Mastercard the Smartest Investment You Can Make Today?

Mastercard is a global force in the payments industry, and its shares have soared in the past couple of decades.Despite the fact that many people might have a Mastercard (MA 0.67%) debit or credit card in their wallets, investors might not be totally familiar with this business. But it's time to take a closer look. Mastercard carries a market cap of about $525 billion, a huge valuation that is a result of the share price soaring more than 12,000% (as of Oct. 1) since its initial public offering in 2006.Sinc ...