Thanks for signing up for DividendStocks.com! It's the daily newsletter built for dividend and income investors. Before we can begin sending your daily updates, there’s one quick step left. Please confirm your subscription using the link below so our emails reach your inbox. Click Here to Confirm Your Subscription to DividendStocks.com Here’s a small glimpse of what you’ll get access to: Dividend Stock Ideas — Each newsletter features dividend stocks with high yields, sustainable payouts, and strong growth potential. Ex-Dividend Stocks — Want to capture upcoming dividend payouts? Find out which stocks are going ex-dividend this week. Market News and Events — Stay in the loop on the latest developments impacting popular dividend names like AT&T, Exxon Mobil, IBM, Procter & Gamble, and Verizon. Bonus: As a thank-you for confirming, you’ll also receive a free PDF copy of Automatic Income, our popular guide to building wealth through dividend investing. Let’s get your dividend journey started! Discover Top Income-Generating Stocks Here See you in your inbox soon,
The DividendStocks.com Team P.S. Don’t miss out click here to verify your subscription and secure your daily dividend insights and your free investing guide!
This Month's Exclusive Story Why Mastercard and Visa Are the Definition of Forever StocksAuthored by 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: Have $500? Invest in Elon's AI Masterplan
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. Zooming out, however, the companies that make up the sector have proven to be core holdings for buy-and-hold investors. Every single time, the story has been the same. People go to sleep thinking their money is safe. They wake up to find their life savings decimated by government action. Do not let FedNow catch you sleeping. Get the 4 steps here and act on them now With high-quality growth stocks increasingly difficult to find, two legacy firms in the global payment processing and digital payments markets continue to deliver profit margins that qualify them as true long-term, or "forever," stocks. Why Digital Payment and Payment Processors Make for Good Forever Stocks These firms typically earn higher profit margins than many industries because high-volume demand, automation and technology-driven business models translate into very low marginal costs per transaction. The industry is also positioned for robust growth. According to 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, approaching $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 through 2030 to more than $361 billion. While that pace of growth and attractive margins could suggest the space is crowded, two of the largest names still effectively operate a duopoly, handling more than 90% of credit card and digital payments processed outside China. With roots dating to the mid-1900s, these companies control much of the payment infrastructure, allowing them to influence fees, limit competition and sustain strong margins. Despite challengers such as Block (NYSE: XYZ), with Cash App, and PayPal (NASDAQ: PYPL), with Venmo, none 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 focused on expanding tech platforms, supporting cross-border commerce and developing services that reduce fraud, streamline payment flows and turn payments data into actionable insights. That strategy 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 also rose by more than 16% YOY. Much of that profitability stems from extremely low costs of goods sold tied to its technology-driven model; Mastercard reported an effective 100% gross margin throughout 2025, meaning quarterly gross profit essentially matched quarterly net revenue. For investors, that has translated into consistently strong results. The last time Mastercard missed on earnings was Q3 2020 after 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 versus the same quarter a year earlier. Analysts expect earnings to grow about 17% in the year ahead, from $15.91 to $18.61 per share. At the same time, Mastercard is shifting from a traditional payment network into an AI-driven, software-focused enterprise emphasizing enhanced security, simplified B2B transactions with virtual cards and agentic AI tools. Mastercard also pays a dividend—modest at a current yield of 0.69%—but it has increased its payout for 13 consecutive years. The company maintains a sustainable payout ratio of 21.07% and a five-year annualized dividend growth rate of 13.70%. Visa: Evolving and Adapting Since 1958 Visa (NYSE: V) operates a network-based model that lets partnering banks and financial institutions issue branded payment products while Visa concentrates on infrastructure, standards and technology integration. Like Mastercard, Visa is rapidly integrating fintech innovations—investing in AI-driven solutions and exploring blockchain-based settlement—with the aim of moving from traditional card transactions toward more flexible, digital-first experiences by 2026. That strategy helped Visa report record revenue and net income in 2025. Revenue totaled $40 billion—an 11% YOY increase—and net income was nearly $20 billion. Visa's consistency is notable: it hasn't missed on earnings in the past 10 years. Over that stretch, the company met analyst expectations twice and beat EPS estimates 38 times. Much of Visa's resilience comes from its strong margins: the company reported nearly an 83% gross profit margin in 2025, roughly in line with its 10-year average. Visa also pays a modest dividend (current yield 0.87%). Its payout ratio is 25.14% and its five-year annualized dividend growth rate is 14.48%; the company has increased its payout for 17 consecutive years. | 
