In the latest trading session, MasterCard (MA) closed at $508.58, marking a +1.99% move from the previous day. This move outpaced the S&P 500's daily gain of 1.02%. Meanwhile, the Dow gained 0.63%, and the Nasdaq, a tech-heavy index, added 1.23%.
The processor of debit and credit card payments's stock has climbed by 0.13% in the past month, exceeding the Business Services sector's loss of 3.89% and lagging the S&P 500's gain of 0.63%.
Market participants will be closely following the financial results of MasterCard in its upcoming release. The company's earnings per share (EPS) are projected to be $4.38, reflecting a 17.43% increase from the same quarter last year. Meanwhile, the latest consensus estimate predicts the revenue to be $8.29 billion, indicating a 14.41% increase compared to the same quarter of the previous year.
MA's full-year Zacks Consensus Estimates are calling for earnings of $19.51 per share and revenue of $36.96 billion. These results would represent year-over-year changes of +14.7% and +12.73%, respectively.
Investors might also notice recent changes to analyst estimates for MasterCard. Recent revisions tend to reflect the latest near-term business trends. As a result, we can interpret positive estimate revisions as a good sign for the business outlook.
Our research demonstrates that these adjustments in estimates directly associate with imminent stock price performance. Investors can capitalize on this by using the Zacks Rank. This model considers these estimate changes and provides a simple, actionable rating system.
Ranging from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), the Zacks Rank system has a proven, outside-audited track record of outperformance, with #1 stocks returning an average of +25% annually since 1988. Over the last 30 days, the Zacks Consensus EPS estimate has witnessed a 0.4% increase. Right now, MasterCard possesses a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold).
Investors should also note MasterCard's current valuation metrics, including its Forward P/E ratio of 25.56. This represents a premium compared to its industry average Forward P/E of 10.84.
We can also see that MA currently has a PEG ratio of 1.6. The PEG ratio is akin to the commonly utilized P/E ratio, but this measure also incorporates the company's anticipated earnings growth rate. The Financial Transaction Services industry currently had an average PEG ratio of 0.88 as of yesterday's close.
The Financial Transaction Services industry is part of the Business Services sector. With its current Zacks Industry Rank of 158, this industry ranks in the bottom 36% of all industries, numbering over 250.
The Zacks Industry Rank gauges the strength of our individual industry groups by measuring the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within the groups. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.
Ensure to harness Zacks.com to stay updated with all these stock-shifting metrics, among others, in the next trading sessions.
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Mastercard Incorporated (MA): Free Stock Analysis Report
This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).