MA Stock Clocks Best Day In 9 Months: Goldman Sees Bull Case Intact

• Earnings per share came in at $5.28, up from $4.34 in the comparable quarter last year. 
• Goldman Sachs raised its price target on Mastercard to $743 from $716 and kept a ‘Buy’ rating.
• The analyst said MA shares outperformed on a reasonably strong quarter, adding that the company’s bull case remains intact. 

Mastercard Inc. (MA) shares climbed more than 4% at close on Thursday and continued to gain overnight after the company’s third-quarter (Q3) results beat expectations. 

MA stock jumped to a 52-week high of $641.56 during regular trading hours on Thursday and notched its best session since January.

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Goldman Sachs raised its price target on Mastercard to $743 from $716 and kept a ‘Buy’ rating, implying nearly 17% upside from the stock’s last close. 

Mastercard Posts Blowout Q3 Results

The company posted $9.81 billion in quarterly revenue, up 14% year-over-year and ahead of analyst estimates of $9.66 billion, according to Fiscal.ai.

Net profit was $4.63 billion, up from $3.93 billion in the same period last year, and earnings per share was $5.28, up from $4.34 in the previous year’s comparable quarter. 

Mastercard’s Payment Network revenue rose 11% to drive core transaction flows, while Value-Added Services and Solutions revenue jumped 19%. 

Gross Dollar Volume increased 7% on a local currency basis to $3 trillion, and Cross-Border Volume climbed 11% on a local currency basis.

Why Goldman Is Bullish On MA Stock

According to The Fly, Goldman Sachs said MA shares outperformed on a reasonably strong quarter, adding that it sees the core tenets of the company’s bull case remaining intact. 

The firm added that improving lapping dynamics around specific client losses and other headwinds could support a reacceleration, allowing Mastercard to re-establish its premium growth profile and return its multiple toward historical levels.

MA Stock: Retail Stance

On Stocktwits, retail sentiment around MA stock improved from ‘bearish’ to ‘neutral’ territory over 24 hours. Meanwhile, message volume surged 230%, according to platform data. 

One user said, “$MA up ~4% today after the Q3 beat. Value-added services revenue grew 19% y/y vs 11% for the core payment network, so the faster piece keeps getting bigger. Hard not to like that tbh. Bullish.”

Another user said, “$MA such a stable part of the portfolio. Love this stock as a top holding.”

The company’s shares are up about 12% in 2026. 

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