MasterCard (MA) closed at $572.23 in the latest trading session, marking a +1.06% move from the prior day. The stock's performance was ahead of the S&P 500's daily gain of 0.88%. Meanwhile, the Dow gained 0.38%, and the Nasdaq, a tech-heavy index, added 1.31%.
Prior to today's trading, shares of the processor of debit and credit card payments had gained 7.26% outpaced the Business Services sector's gain of 6.72% and the S&P 500's gain of 2.48%.
The upcoming earnings release of MasterCard will be of great interest to investors. The company's earnings per share (EPS) are projected to be $4.21, reflecting a 10.21% increase from the same quarter last year. Meanwhile, the latest consensus estimate predicts the revenue to be $8.74 billion, indicating a 16.73% increase compared to the same quarter of the previous year.
MA's full-year Zacks Consensus Estimates are calling for earnings of $16.43 per share and revenue of $32.63 billion. These results would represent year-over-year changes of +12.53% and +15.84%, respectively.
Any recent changes to analyst estimates for MasterCard should also be noted by investors. Such recent modifications usually signify the changing landscape of near-term business trends. As such, positive estimate revisions reflect analyst optimism about the business and profitability.
Our research shows that these estimate changes are directly correlated with near-term stock prices. To exploit this, we've formed the Zacks Rank, a quantitative model that includes these estimate changes and presents a viable rating system.
The Zacks Rank system, which ranges from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), has an impressive outside-audited track record of outperformance, with #1 stocks generating an average annual return of +25% since 1988. Over the past month, the Zacks Consensus EPS estimate has shifted 0.02% downward. MasterCard currently has a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold).
Investors should also note MasterCard's current valuation metrics, including its Forward P/E ratio of 34.46. For comparison, its industry has an average Forward P/E of 14.71, which means MasterCard is trading at a premium to the group.
Meanwhile, MA's PEG ratio is currently 2.22. 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 was holding an average PEG ratio of 1.03 at yesterday's closing price.
The Financial Transaction Services industry is part of the Business Services sector. This industry currently has a Zacks Industry Rank of 169, which puts it in the bottom 32% of all 250+ industries.
The Zacks Industry Rank assesses the vigor of our specific industry groups by computing the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks incorporated in the groups. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.
You can find more information on all of these metrics, and much more, on Zacks.com.
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Mastercard Incorporated (MA): Free Stock Analysis ReportThis article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).
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