Mastercard (NYSE:MA) is the second-largest credit card company on the planet, second only to VISA. Both major credit card issuers have seen usage increase through the 2010s. Credit card users were able to take advantage of historically low interest rates and an environment that encouraged the issuance of cheap credit.
Shares of Mastercard fell 7.8% month-over-month as of close on Thursday, October 26. Meanwhile, the stock was still up 5.3% so far in 2023. The stock has increased 14% year over year.
This company released its third quarter (Q3) fiscal 2023 earnings on October 26. Mastercard reported net revenues of $6.53 billion in Q3 2023 – up 14% compared to the previous year. That beat out consensus estimates by a very narrow margin. On the operational side, Mastercard “advanced 11% on a local-currency basis to $2.3 trillion”. Moreover, cross-border volumes climbed 21%. The company also reported that value-added services and solutions delivered net revenue growth of 17% to $2.32 billion. Operating expenses climbed 2% to $2.68 billion due to higher general and administrative expenses. However, operating expenses did come in lower than originally expected.
Mastercard also provided guidance for the fourth quarter (Q4) of fiscal 2023. The company is projecting net revenues to post low double-digit growth compared to the prior year. Moreover, operating expenses are expected to continue to be on the high side. Investors will want to digest these numbers as they weigh how to approach the market in the final months of a volatile year.
