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MasterCard (MA) Outpaces Stock Market Gains: What You Should Know

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MasterCard (MA - Free Report) closed the most recent trading day at $188.65, moving +1.34% from the previous trading session. This change outpaced the S&P 500's 0.85% gain on the day. At the same time, the Dow added 1.15%, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq gained 0.77%.

Coming into today, shares of the processor of debit and credit card payments had lost 5.34% in the past month. In that same time, the Business Services sector lost 9.66%, while the S&P 500 lost 9.35%.

Investors will be hoping for strength from MA as it approaches its next earnings release, which is expected to be January 31, 2019. The company is expected to report EPS of $1.66, up 45.61% from the prior-year quarter. Meanwhile, our latest consensus estimate is calling for revenue of $3.79 billion, up 14.44% from the prior-year quarter.

Investors might also notice recent changes to analyst estimates for MA. These revisions typically reflect the latest short-term business trends, which can change frequently. 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. 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. The Zacks Consensus EPS estimate has moved 0.14% higher within the past month. MA currently has a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

Investors should also note MA's current valuation metrics, including its Forward P/E ratio of 28.9. Its industry sports an average Forward P/E of 18.65, so we one might conclude that MA is trading at a premium comparatively.

It is also worth noting that MA currently has a PEG ratio of 1.59. The PEG ratio is similar to the widely-used P/E ratio, but this metric also takes the company's expected earnings growth rate into account. MA's industry had an average PEG ratio of 1.35 as of yesterday's close.

The Financial Transaction Services industry is part of the Business Services sector. This group has a Zacks Industry Rank of 35, putting it in the top 14% 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.

To follow MA in the coming trading sessions, be sure to utilize Zacks.com.


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