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Monday's Bonus Story Why Mastercard and Visa Are the Definition of Forever StocksBy Jordan Chussler. Posted: 3/14/2026. 
In Brief - The financials sector has lagged the S&P 500 this year, but two payment processing giants continue to deliver the kind of margins and earnings consistency that define long-term holdings.
- Despite recent sector-wide struggles, Visa and Mastercard function as a veritable duopoly, controlling over 90% of payments outside of China.
- Visa hasn't missed on earnings in 10 years, while Mastercard has secured 21 consecutive quarterly beats.
After averaging nearly a 23% annual gain over the past two years, the financials sector has struggled this year. With a year-to-date loss of around 9%, the cohort now ranks last among the S&P 500's 11 sectors. Zooming out, many companies in the sector remain core holdings for buy-and-hold investors. With high-quality growth stocks harder to find, two legacy companies in global payment processing and digital payments continue to deliver profit margins that make them strong candidates for long-term, "forever" stock allocations. Why Digital Payment and Payment Processors Make for Good Forever Stocks These companies have historically enjoyed higher profit margins than many other industries, driven by high-volume demand, extensive automation and technology-driven models that translate into low marginal costs per transaction. The industry is also poised for strong growth. According to industry analytics firm Grand View Research, the global payment processing solutions market, valued at nearly $48 billion in 2022, is projected to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 14.5% through 2030, reaching nearly $140 billion by the start of the next decade. Grand View also forecasts that the digital payment market, valued at more than $114 billion in 2024, will grow at a 21.4% CAGR through 2030, reaching more than $361 billion. While that level of growth and attractive gross margins might suggest the space is crowded, two of the biggest names in the industry still operate in a near-duopoly, controlling over 90% of credit card and digital payments processed outside of China. With roots dating back to the mid-1900s, these firms control much of the payments infrastructure, allowing them to set fees, limit competition and maintain strong margins. Despite efforts by companies such as Block, with its peer-to-peer payment service Cash App, and PayPal (NASDAQ: PYPL), with its popular platform Venmo, to serve as disruptors, few firms fit the "forever stock" profile better than the two below. Mastercard: The $450 Billion Market Cap Company Focusing on Tech Integration Since Michael Miebach became CEO of Mastercard (NYSE: MA) in 2021, management has prioritized expanding tech platforms, supporting cross-border commerce and developing services that help clients reduce fraud, streamline payment flows and leverage payments data for insights. Those efforts helped Mastercard post record revenue and net income in 2025. Revenue of nearly $33 billion represented a year-over-year (YOY) increase of more than 16%, while net income of nearly $15 billion was also up more than 16% YOY. That profitability was driven largely by a 100% gross margin throughout 2025, enabled by tech integrations and a minimal cost of goods sold; as a result, the company's quarterly gross profit effectively matched its quarterly net revenue. For investors, that has translated into consistently strong earnings per share. The last time Mastercard missed on earnings was Q3 2020 following the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. Since then, the company has recorded 21 consecutive quarterly earnings beats. Most recently, Mastercard reported Q4 2025 EPS of $4.76, a nearly 25% YOY increase. Analysts expect earnings to rise roughly 17% in the year ahead, from $15.91 to $18.61 per share. At the same time, the company has been embracing broader fintech trends, shifting from a traditional payment network toward an AI-driven, software-focused enterprise that emphasizes enhanced security, simplified B2B transactions with virtual cards and agentic AI tools. Icing the cake, Mastercard pays a dividend that—while modest (currently 0.69%)—has increased for 13 consecutive years. The firm maintains a sustainable dividend payout ratio of 21.07% and an annualized five-year dividend growth rate of 13.70%. Visa: Evolving and Adapting Since 1958 Visa (NYSE: V) operates a network-based model that enables partner banks and financial institutions to issue branded payment products while Visa focuses on infrastructure, standards and technology integration. Like Mastercard, Visa is integrating fintech capabilities, focusing on AI-driven solutions and blockchain-based settlement, with the aim of shifting from traditional card-based transactions to more flexible, digital-first experiences by 2026. That strategy helped Visa report record revenue and net income in 2025. Revenue came in at $40 billion—an 11% YOY increase—while net income registered nearly $20 billion. While Mastercard's stretch of earnings beats is notable, Visa has not missed on earnings in the past 10 years. Over that span, the company met analyst expectations twice and beat EPS forecasts 38 times. Much of Visa's consistency stems from its strong profitability: the company posted a nearly 83% gross profit margin in 2025, consistent with its 10-year average. Like its counterpart, Visa also pays a modest dividend (currently yielding 0.87%). Its payout ratio is a healthy 25.14%, the annualized five-year dividend growth rate is 14.48%, and the company has increased its payout for 17 consecutive years.
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