Mastercard : 2026 Q1 Earnings Release

Published: 2026-04-30 08:05:13 ET MA

Published on 04/30/2026 at 08:05 am EDT

Earnings Release

"Mastercard is diversified, future-ready, and delivering. In Q1, net revenue increased 16%, and value-added services and solutions grew 22% year over year - or 12% and 18% respectively on a currency-neutral basis. Building on our strong foundation, we're advancing agentic commerce with Mastercard Agent Pay and expanding our stablecoin solutions through the planned acquisition of BVNK. We're well positioned to capture the next wave of digital payments growth and continue to support secure commerce around the world." - Michael Miebach, CEO

Quarterly Results

First Quarter Operating Results Increase / (Decrease)

Q1 2026

Q1 2025

GAAP

neutral

Net revenue

$8.4

$7.3

16%

12%

Operating expenses

$3.5

$3.1

13%

10%

Operating income

$4.9

$4.1

18%

13%

Operating margin

58.4%

57.2%

1.2 ppt

0.6 ppt

Effective income tax rate

19.3%

18.6%

0.7 ppt

0.6 ppt

Net income

$3.9

$3.3

18%

13%

Diluted EPS

$4.35

$3.59

21%

16%

$ in billions, except per share data

Reported

Currency-

Key First Quarter Non-GAAP Results 1 Increase / (Decrease)

$ in billions, except per share data

Q1 2026 Q1 2025 As adjusted

Currency-neutral

Net revenue

$8.4

$7.3

16%

12%

Adjusted operating expenses

$3.3

$3.0

11%

9%

Adjusted operating margin

60.8%

59.3%

1.5 ppt

1.0 ppt

Adjusted effective income tax rate

19.2%

19.1%

0.1 ppt

0.1 ppt

Adjusted net income

$4.1

$3.4

20%

15%

Adjusted diluted EPS

$4.60

$3.73

23%

18%

1 The Key First Quarter Non-GAAP Results exclude the impact of gains and losses on the company's equity investments, special items as described on page 10 ("First Quarter Special Items") and/or the translational and transactional impact of currency and the related impact of the company's foreign exchange derivative contracts designated as cash flow hedging instruments (specifically those that manage the impact of foreign currency variability on anticipated revenues and expenses). See page 10 for the company's non-GAAP adjustments and the reconciliation to GAAP reported amounts.

Q1 2026 Key Business Drivers

Gross dollar volume Cross-border volume Switched

(local currency basis) (local currency basis)

transactions

up 7% up 13% up 9%

The following information is provided to aid in understanding Mastercard's first quarter 2026 results, versus the year ago period.

Net revenue increased 16%, or 12% on a currency-neutral basis versus the comparable period in 2025. This increase was attributable to growth in our payment network and value-added services and solutions.

Payment network net revenue increased 12%, or 8% on a currency-neutral basis. Primary drivers of the increase were as follows:

Gross dollar volume growth of 7%, on a local currency basis, to $2.7 trillion.

Cross-border volume growth of 13% on a local currency basis.

Switched transactions growth of 9%.

This increase in payment network net revenue includes growth in payment network rebates and incentives provided to customers. Payment network rebates and incentives increased 23%, or 19% on a currency-neutral basis, primarily due to an increase in our key drivers, as well as new and renewed deals.

Value-added services and solutions net revenue increased 22%, or 18% on a currency-neutral basis. The increase was driven primarily by growth in our underlying key drivers, our security solutions, digital and authentication solutions, business and market insights and consumer acquisition and engagement services, and pricing.

Total operating expenses increased 13% as compared to the same period in 2025, primarily due to higher general and administrative expenses which included a restructuring charge in the first quarter of 2026, partially offset by lower litigation provisions. Excluding the impact of First Quarter Special Items, adjusted operating expenses increased 11%, or 9% on a currency-neutral basis, primarily due to higher general and administrative expenses.

Other income (expense) was favorable by $23 million versus the year ago period, primarily due to government grant agreements executed in the fourth quarter 2025, partially offset by higher net losses on our equity investments year over year. Excluding the impact of net gains and losses on our equity investments, adjusted other income (expense) was favorable by $61 million versus the year ago period primarily due to government grants.

The effective tax rate for the first quarter of 2026 was 19.3%, versus 18.6% for the comparable period in 2025, primarily due to lower net discrete tax benefits in 2026. The adjusted effective tax rate for the first quarter of 2026 was 19.2%, versus 19.1% for the comparable period in 2025.

As of March 31, 2026, the company's customers had issued 3.7 billion Mastercard and Maestro-branded cards.

During the first quarter of 2026, Mastercard repurchased 7.8 million shares at a cost of $4.0 billion and paid $777 million in dividends.

Quarter-to-date through April 27, the company repurchased 3.3 million shares at a cost of $1.7 billion, which leaves $11.7 billion remaining under approved share repurchase programs.

At 9:00 a.m. ET today, the company will host a conference call to discuss its first quarter 2026 results. The dial-in information for this call is 1-888-330-2508 (Toll-free) and 1-240-789-2735 (Toll dial-in), using passcode 6451878. A replay of the call will be available for 30 days and can be accessed by dialing 1-800-770-2030 (Toll-free) and 1-647-362-9199 (Toll dial-in), using passcode 6451878.

A live audio webcast of this call, along with presentation slides, can also be accessed through the Investor Relations section of the company's website at investor.mastercard.com.

This press release contains forward-looking statements pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. All statements other than statements of historical facts may be forward-looking statements. When used in this press release, the words "believe", "expect", "could", "may", "would", "will", "trend" and similar words are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Examples of forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, statements that relate to the company's future prospects, developments and business strategies. We caution you to not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, as they speak only as of the date they are made. Except for the company's ongoing obligations under the U.S. federal securities laws, the company does not intend to update or otherwise revise the forward-looking information to reflect actual results of operations, changes in financial condition, changes in estimates, expectations or assumptions, changes in general economic or industry conditions or other circumstances arising and/or existing since the preparation of this press release or to reflect the occurrence of any unanticipated events.

Many factors and uncertainties relating to our operations and business environment, all of which are difficult to predict and many of which are outside of our control, influence whether any forward-looking statements can or will be achieved. Any one of those factors could cause our actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied in writing in any forward-looking statements made by Mastercard or on its behalf, including, but not limited to, the following factors:

regulation related to the payments industry (including regulatory, legislative and litigation activity with respect to interchange rates and surcharging)

the impact of preferential or protective government actions

regulation of privacy, data, AI, information security and the digital economy

regulation that directly or indirectly applies to us based on our participation in the global payments industry (including anti-money laundering, countering the financing of terrorism, economic sanctions and anti-corruption, account-based payments systems, and issuer and acquirer practices regulation)

the impact of changes in tax laws, as well as regulations and interpretations of such laws or challenges to our tax positions

potential or incurred liability and limitations on business related to any litigation or litigation settlements

the impact of competition in the global payments industry (including disintermediation and pricing pressure)

the challenges relating to rapid technological developments and changes

the challenges relating to operating a real-time account-based payments system and to working with new customers and end users

the impact of information security incidents, account data breaches or service disruptions

issues related to our relationships with our stakeholders (including loss of substantial business from significant customers, competitor relationships with our customers, consolidation amongst our customers, merchants' continued focus on acceptance costs and unique risks from our work with governments)

the impact of global economic, political, financial and societal events and conditions, including adverse currency fluctuations and foreign exchange controls

reputational impact, including impact related to brand perception and lack of visibility of our brands in products and services

the impact of environmental, social and governance matters and related stakeholder reaction

the inability to attract and retain a highly qualified workforce, or maintain our corporate culture

issues related to acquisition integration, strategic investments and entry into new businesses

exposure to loss or illiquidity due to our role as guarantor as well as other contractual obligations and discretionary actions we may take

issues related to our Class A common stock and corporate governance structure

For additional information on these and other factors that could cause the company's actual results to differ materially from expected results, please see the company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including the company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2025 and any subsequent reports on Forms 10-Q and 8-K.

Mastercard powers economies and empowers people in more than 220 countries and territories worldwide. Together with our customers, we are building a resilient economy where everyone can prosper. We support a wide range of digital payments choices, making transactions secure, simple, smart and accessible. Our technology and innovation, partnerships and networks combine to deliver a unique set of products and services that help people, businesses and governments realize their greatest potential.

https://www.mastercard.com

Investor Relations: Media Relations:

Devin Corr Seth Eisen

[email protected] [email protected]

914-249-4565 914-249-3153

Disclaimer

MasterCard Inc. published this content on April 30, 2026, and is solely responsible for the information contained herein. Distributed via Public Technologies (PUBT), unedited and unaltered, on April 30, 2026 at 12:04 UTC.