MasterCard (MA) Outpaces Stock Market Gains: What You Should Know
In the latest trading session, MasterCard (MA) closed at $309.18, marking a +1.34% move from the previous day. This change outpaced the S&P 500's 0.67% gain on the day. Elsewhere, the Dow gained 0.74%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq added 0.81%.
Prior to today's trading, shares of the processor of debit and credit card payments had gained 5.19% over the past month. This has outpaced the Business Services sector's gain of 1.59% and the S&P 500's gain of 3.55% in that time.
Wall Street will be looking for positivity from MA as it approaches its next earnings report date. This is expected to be January 29, 2020. On that day, MA is projected to report earnings of $1.86 per share, which would represent year-over-year growth of 20%. Meanwhile, our latest consensus estimate is calling for revenue of $4.39 billion, up 15.42% from the prior-year quarter.
It is also important to note the recent changes to analyst estimates for MA. These recent revisions tend to reflect the evolving nature of short-term business trends. As such, positive estimate revisions reflect analyst optimism about the company's business and profitability.
Our research shows that these estimate changes are directly correlated with near-term stock prices. We developed the Zacks Rank to capitalize on this phenomenon. Our system takes these estimate changes into account and delivers a clear, actionable rating model.
The Zacks Rank system ranges from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell). It has a remarkable, outside-audited track record of success, with #1 stocks delivering an average annual return of +25% since 1988. Over the past month, the Zacks Consensus EPS estimate has moved 0.02% higher. MA currently has a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold).
Digging into valuation, MA currently has a Forward P/E ratio of 33.72. For comparison, its industry has an average Forward P/E of 21.95, which means MA is trading at a premium to the group.
It is also worth noting that MA currently has a PEG ratio of 2.11. This metric is used similarly to the famous P/E ratio, but the PEG ratio also takes into account the stock's expected earnings growth rate. Financial Transaction Services stocks are, on average, holding a PEG ratio of 1.71 based on yesterday's closing prices.
The Financial Transaction Services industry is part of the Business Services sector. This group has a Zacks Industry Rank of 56, putting it in the top 22% of all 250+ industries.
The Zacks Industry Rank includes is listed in order from best to worst in terms of the average Zacks Rank of the individual companies within each of these sectors. 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.
Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report
Mastercard Incorporated (MA) : Free Stock Analysis Report
To read this article on Zacks.com click here.
Zacks Investment Research
