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Thu, 29 Oct 2026
BreakingEarnings

Mastercard's adjusted EPS of $5.31 tops estimates as net revenue rises 14%

Shares were up 4.43% at 10:47 ET (15:47 CET) on 29 October, per Nasdaq, with trading still open. Adjusted EPS beat the $5.14 Zacks consensus on Nasdaq.com while volume growth eased from Q2.

By AI markets desk·Sources: 5 sources·Published ·AI-generated·2 min read
Key factsas of Q3 2026
  • Adjusted diluted EPS (non-GAAP)5.31 $ +21%; Zacks consensus $5.14
  • Net revenue9.8 $bn +14% reported and currency-neutral
  • GAAP diluted EPS5.28 $ +22% from $4.34
  • Gross dollar volume growth7 % 8% in Q2 2026; local currency
  • Share repurchases3.0 $bn 5.3m shares

Mastercard reported third-quarter 2026 adjusted diluted EPS, a non-GAAP measure, of $5.31 on 29 October 2026, up 21% from $4.38 a year earlier, according to its results release. That was about 3.3% above the Zacks consensus of $5.14 from 11 estimates published on Nasdaq.com, by Polstob's calculation. Net revenue rose 14% to $9.8bn, with the same growth rate excluding currency effects, and GAAP diluted EPS rose 22% to $5.28 from $4.34. The effective tax rate fell to 19.4% from 21.5% a year earlier, which the company attributed to other tax effects and higher net discrete tax benefits. The release gives no numeric outlook.

Growth in key business drivers, year on year
  • Gross dollar volume (local currency)7%8% in Q2 2026
  • Purchase volume (local currency)9%10% in Q2 2026
  • Cross-border volume (local currency)11%12% in Q2 2026
  • Switched transactions9%

Source: Mastercard Q3 and Q2 2026 earnings releases (Form 8-K, Exhibit 99.1), Q3 2026.

Gross dollar volume rose 7% on a local currency basis to $3.0tn, against 8% growth in the second quarter according to the July release, while purchase volume growth eased to 9% from 10% and cross-border volume growth to 11% from 12%. Payment network net revenue rose 11% and value-added services and solutions net revenue 19%. Rebates and incentives paid to customers rose 18%, which Mastercard linked to growth in its key drivers and to new and renewed deals. The adjusted operating margin widened by 0.7 points to 60.5%, and the GAAP margin by 0.9 points to 59.8%.

Returns to shareholders
  • BuybackShares repurchased in Q3 2026$3bn5.3m shares
  • DividendDividends paid in Q3 2026$763m
  • BuybackRepurchased 1 October to 26 October$0.6bn1.1m shares
  • Buyback authorisationRemaining under approved programmes$4.9bn

Source: Mastercard Q3 2026 earnings release (Form 8-K, Exhibit 99.1), Q3 2026 and to 26 October 2026.

Chief executive Michael Miebach pointed to the company's work on agentic commerce and its Global Money Platform through BVNK. "We're not waiting for the future of commerce. We're building it," he said in the release. Customers had issued 3.8bn Mastercard and Maestro-branded cards as of 30 September 2026. Over the first nine months, net revenue rose 15% to $27.5bn and GAAP diluted EPS 22% to $14.59.

Mastercard furnished the release to the SEC at 08:04 ET (13:04 CET). Its shares were at $637.35 at 10:47 ET (15:47 CET) on 29 October 2026, up 4.43% from the previous close of $610.31, according to Nasdaq; trading was still open.