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This Month's Featured Story Why Mastercard and Visa Are the Definition of Forever StocksBy Jordan Chussler. Date Posted: 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's "Hidden" Company
After finishing the past two years with an average annual gain of nearly 23%, the financials sector has struggled this year. With a year-to-date loss of around 9%, the cohort ranks last among the S&P 500's 11 sectors. On a longer-term horizon, however, many companies in the sector remain core holdings for buy-and-hold investors. 3 Signs It May Be Time to Switch Financial Advisors… Your goals aren't being heard, you're making costly tax mistakes, or your portfolio strategy may not be aligned with market conditions. This free quiz matches you with vetted fiduciary advisors who serve your area — each legally bound to work in your interest. No cost, no commitment. Find your matches today. High-quality growth stocks have become harder to find, but two long-established companies in the global payment-processing and digital-payment markets continue to deliver margins and durability that make them attractive "forever" stocks. Why Digital Payment and Payment Processors Make for Good Forever Stocks These companies historically enjoy higher profit margins than many other industries, thanks to strong transaction volume, extensive automation, and technology-driven business models that keep marginal costs per transaction low. The industry is also positioned for strong growth. According to 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. Grand View also forecasts the digital payment market, valued at more than $114 billion in 2024, will grow at a 21.4% CAGR through 2030, reaching over $361 billion. Despite that attractive growth and strong margins, two of the biggest names—Mastercard and Visa—continue to operate in a de facto duopoly, together handling more than 90% of credit card and digital payments processed outside of China. Their control of the payments infrastructure gives them pricing power, limits competition, and helps sustain robust margins. While companies such as Block (NYSE: XYZ) with Cash App and PayPal (NASDAQ: PYPL) with Venmo seek to disrupt the space, none align with the "forever stock" profile as neatly as the two companies profiled below. Mastercard: The $450 Billion Market Cap Company Focusing on Tech Integration Since Michael Miebach became CEO in 2021, Mastercard (NYSE: MA) has prioritized expanding tech platforms, supporting cross-border commerce, and building services that reduce fraud, streamline payment flows, and turn payments data into actionable insights. That strategy helped Mastercard deliver 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 also rose by more than 16% YOY. Profitability was driven in large part by a reported 100% gross margin in 2025, enabled by tech integrations and minimal cost of goods sold—so much so that quarterly gross profit consistently matched quarterly net revenue. For shareholders, that performance has translated into reliable earnings. Mastercard last missed earnings in Q3 2020 after the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic and has since delivered 21 consecutive quarterly earnings beats. Most recently, the company reported Q4 2025 EPS of $4.76, a nearly 25% YOY increase. Analysts expect Mastercard's EPS to rise about 17% over the coming year, from $15.91 to $18.61. Mastercard has also shifted from a traditional payment network toward an AI-driven, software-focused enterprise that emphasizes enhanced security, simplified B2B transactions through virtual cards, and agentic AI tools. Additionally, Mastercard pays a dividend. While the yield is modest (currently 0.69%), the company has increased its payout for 13 consecutive years, maintains a sustainable payout ratio of about 21.07%, and has a five-year annualized dividend growth rate near 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 provides the underlying infrastructure, standards, and technology. Like Mastercard, Visa is integrating fintech innovations—focusing on AI-driven solutions and blockchain-based settlement—to move beyond traditional card-based transactions toward more flexible, digital-first experiences by 2026. That strategy contributed to Visa reporting record revenue and net income in 2025: revenue of roughly $40 billion, an 11% YOY increase, and net income near $20 billion. Visa's consistency is notable. The company has not missed an earnings estimate in the past 10 years; during that period it met expectations twice and beat EPS estimates 38 times. Much of Visa's resilience stems from high profitability—its gross profit margin was about 83% in 2025, in line with its 10-year average. Like Mastercard, Visa pays a modest dividend (currently yielding 0.87%). Its payout ratio is a healthy ~25.14%, and its five-year annualized dividend growth rate is about 14.48%. Visa has raised its dividend for 17 consecutive years. | 
