UBS’ Top Tech Based Disruptive Stocks For 2030: Top 29 Stocks

5. Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders In Q2 2024: 142

Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) is one of the two dominant payment processing and card payment service providers in the US. It covers 24% of the US credit card market share, making it a smaller player to Visa. The advent of financial technology and the internet has meant that firms like Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) have to be on their toes or lose market share to upstart. On this front, 2024 has been quite a consequential year for the firm. It has seen Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) and Visa agree to a historical settlement to assuage merchant woes related to fees. This is key since the pair have already been irking merchants through their 60 day fraud protection policies. However, the deal has been put on hold, and regulatory pressure is also increasing on the sector after the Justice Department’s decision to sue Visa for being a debit card monopoly. On a broader level, Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)’s stock depends on consumer spending trends, with higher spending leading to tailwinds.

L1 Capital mentioned Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) in its Q2 2024 investor letter. Here is what the firm said:

“The share prices of Mastercard and Visa, both long term Fund investments, have both drifted down over recent months. There have been no dramatic developments, but there has been a general slight softening in the rate of growth of consumer spending in the U.S. and globally, a court decision rejecting Mastercard and Visa’s proposed settlement of a long-lasting dispute with U.S. merchants as well as other modest adverse regulatory developments. We continue to view Mastercard and Visa as two of the highest quality businesses in the world, and both are well placed to continue to deliver attractive, risk adjusted returns to shareholders over time.”