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Just For You Why Mastercard and Visa Are the Definition of Forever StocksReported by Jordan Chussler. Originally Published: 3/14/2026. 
Key Points - 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.
- Special Report: Elon Musk: This Could Turn $100 into $100,000
After averaging nearly 23% annual gains over the past two years, the financials sector has struggled in 2026. With a year-to-date loss of roughly 9%, the group ranks last among the S&P 500's 11 sectors. Zooming out, however, the companies that make up the sector remain important components of buy-and-hold investors' portfolios. High-quality growth stocks are harder to find today, but two legacy companies that operate in global payment processing and digital payments continue to generate profit margins that qualify them as true "forever stocks." Why Digital Payment and Payment Processors Make for Good Forever Stocks These firms have historically enjoyed higher profit margins than many other industries because of strong transaction volumes, automation, and technology-driven models that translate into low marginal costs per transaction. The industry is also positioned for continued expansion. Industry analytics firm Grand View Research projects the global payment processing solutions market, valued at nearly $48 billion in 2022, will grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 14.5% through 2030, reaching nearly $140 billion. Grand View also forecasts the digital payment market, valued at more than $114 billion in 2024, will expand at a 21.4% CAGR to exceed $361 billion by 2030. While that growth and attractive gross margins might suggest a crowded field, two of the biggest names still operate in a near-duopoly, handling more than 90% of credit card and digital payments processed outside China. With roots dating back to the mid-1900s, these companies control critical payment infrastructure, which helps them set fees, limit competition and preserve robust margins. Despite aspirants such as Block (NYSE: XYZ), with its Cash App, and PayPal (NASDAQ: PYPL), with Venmo, none fit the bill as reliably as the two names below when it comes to forever stocks. Mastercard: The $450 Billion Market Cap Company Focusing on Tech Integration Since Michael Miebach took the reins at Mastercard (NYSE: MA) in 2021, management has focused on expanding tech platforms, supporting cross-border commerce and developing services that help clients reduce fraud, streamline payment flows and extract insights from payments data. In 2025, Mastercard posted record revenue and net income. Revenue of nearly $33 billion represented a year-over-year (YOY) increase of more than 16%, while net income of nearly $15 billion also rose by more than 16% YOY. That profitability was driven in large part by a 100% gross margin throughout 2025, made possible by tech integrations and a minimal cost of goods sold, which resulted in quarterly gross profit closely matching 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 delivered 21 consecutive quarterly earnings beats. Most recently, Mastercard reported Q4 2025 EPS of $4.76, a nearly 25% YOY increase. Analysts expect earnings to climb roughly 17% in the year ahead, from $15.91 to $18.61 per share. At the same time, Mastercard has been embracing broader fintech trends, shifting from a traditional payment network toward an AI-driven, software-focused enterprise that emphasizes enhanced security, simpler B2B transactions with virtual cards and agentic AI tools. To top it off, Mastercard pays a dividend. While its yield is modest (currently 0.69%), the payout has increased for 13 consecutive years. Mastercard 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 model that enables banks and other financial institutions to issue branded payment products while Visa focuses on infrastructure, standards and technology integration. Like Mastercard, Visa is rapidly integrating fintech capabilities, emphasizing AI-driven solutions and blockchain-based settlement, with a stated goal of moving 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 reached $40 billion—an 11% YOY increase—while net income approached $20 billion. While Mastercard's streak of earnings beats is notable, Visa has not missed earnings once in the past 10 years. During that span, the company met analyst expectations twice and beat EPS estimates 38 times. Much of Visa's consistency comes from its strong profitability: the company posted nearly an 83% gross profit margin in 2025, consistent with its 10-year average. Like Mastercard, Visa pays a modest dividend (currently yielding 0.87%). Visa's payout ratio is a healthy 25.14%, its annualized five-year dividend growth rate is 14.48%, and the company has raised its payout for 17 consecutive years. | 
