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Mastercard (MA) Q3 Earnings & Revenues Beat on Volume Growth
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Mastercard Inc. (MA - Free Report) reported third-quarter earnings of $2.15 per share, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 7%. Earnings improved 21% year over year.
Better-than-expected results were primarily driven by higher switched transactions, increase in cross-border volume and gross dollar volume, and gains from acquisitions. Increase in rebates and incentives year over year was a partial dampener.
Mastercard’s revenues of $4.5 billion beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 1.7% and were up 15% year over year.
Total adjusted operating expenses rose 15% to $1.8 billion, due to the company’s continued investment in strategic initiatives. Interest expenses of $63 million increased 31% year over year.
Adjusted operating margin remained unchanged year over year at 59.4%. Gross dollar volume increased 14% to $1.7 trillion while cross-border volumes were up 17% on a local-currency basis.
As of Sep 30, 2019, the company’s customers had issued 2.6 billion Mastercard and Maestro-branded cards.
Financial Update
As of Sep 30, 2019, the company’s cash and cash equivalents were $5.1 billion, down 23.6% from year-end 2018 level. Long-term debt was $7.7 billion, up 33% from Dec 31, 2018.
Share Repurchase and Dividend Payout
During the reported quarter, Mastercard repurchased shares worth $1.8 billion and paid out $335 million in dividends.
Our Take
Mastercard is poised to grow, given its solid market position, ongoing expansion and digital initiatives, plus significant opportunities from the secular shift toward electronic payments. Its numerous acquisitions have aided revenue growth.
However, escalating costs will put pressure on the company’s bottom line. In order to gain customers and new business, Mastercard has been incurring high levels of costs under rebates and incentives, which remains a concern. Nevertheless, its strong balance sheet enables business investment, thereby driving growth.
Among the companies in the same space that have reported earnings for the quarter ending Sep 30, 2019, Visa Inc. (V - Free Report) , American Express Co. AXP and Discover Financial Services (DFS - Free Report) , each beat their respective Zacks Consensus Estimate by 2.8%, 0.48% and 3.3%, respectively.
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Mastercard (MA) Q3 Earnings & Revenues Beat on Volume Growth
Mastercard Inc. (MA - Free Report) reported third-quarter earnings of $2.15 per share, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 7%. Earnings improved 21% year over year.
Better-than-expected results were primarily driven by higher switched transactions, increase in cross-border volume and gross dollar volume, and gains from acquisitions. Increase in rebates and incentives year over year was a partial dampener.
Mastercard Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise
Mastercard Incorporated price-consensus-eps-surprise-chart | Mastercard Incorporated Quote
Strong Operational Performance
Mastercard’s revenues of $4.5 billion beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 1.7% and were up 15% year over year.
Total adjusted operating expenses rose 15% to $1.8 billion, due to the company’s continued investment in strategic initiatives. Interest expenses of $63 million increased 31% year over year.
Adjusted operating margin remained unchanged year over year at 59.4%.
Gross dollar volume increased 14% to $1.7 trillion while cross-border volumes were up 17% on a local-currency basis.
As of Sep 30, 2019, the company’s customers had issued 2.6 billion Mastercard and Maestro-branded cards.
Financial Update
As of Sep 30, 2019, the company’s cash and cash equivalents were $5.1 billion, down 23.6% from year-end 2018 level. Long-term debt was $7.7 billion, up 33% from Dec 31, 2018.
Share Repurchase and Dividend Payout
During the reported quarter, Mastercard repurchased shares worth $1.8 billion and paid out $335 million in dividends.
Our Take
Mastercard is poised to grow, given its solid market position, ongoing expansion and digital initiatives, plus significant opportunities from the secular shift toward electronic payments. Its numerous acquisitions have aided revenue growth.
However, escalating costs will put pressure on the company’s bottom line. In order to gain customers and new business, Mastercard has been incurring high levels of costs under rebates and incentives, which remains a concern. Nevertheless, its strong balance sheet enables business investment, thereby driving growth.
Mastercard carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).
You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
Among the companies in the same space that have reported earnings for the quarter ending Sep 30, 2019, Visa Inc. (V - Free Report) , American Express Co. AXP and Discover Financial Services (DFS - Free Report) , each beat their respective Zacks Consensus Estimate by 2.8%, 0.48% and 3.3%, respectively.
Breakout Biotech Stocks with Triple-Digit Profit Potential
The biotech sector is projected to surge beyond $775 billion by 2024 as scientists develop treatments for thousands of diseases. They’re also finding ways to edit the human genome to literally erase our vulnerability to these diseases.
Zacks has just released Century of Biology: 7 Biotech Stocks to Buy Right Now to help investors profit from 7 stocks poised for outperformance. Our recent biotech recommendations have produced gains of +98%, +119% and +164% in as little as 1 month. The stocks in this report could perform even better.
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