Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) announced a tie up with Samsung (KS:005930) Knox, the security platform owned by the mobile phone mammoth — Samsung.
The alliance involves the integration of Mastercard’s innovative technology with Samsung’s efficient device management and security services.
Rationale Behind the Partnership
Backed by Mastercard’s Pay on Demand platform, the tie-up will bridge the digital gap between various financial institutions and small-scale businesses in developing countries.
By teaming up with Samsung Knox, the platform is likely to be available in Africa and the Middle East regions at the beginning of 2020. Later this year, the platform is expected to expand in other developing economies.
Other Initiatives Taken Up by Mastercard
To date, the company has banked on several collaborations to enhance its core product solutions and generate additional revenue streams. In January 2020, Mastercard teamed up with the digital personal finance company, SoFi. Last year, it collaborated with financial-services provider Swiss Bankers to enhance its money transfer services. Moreover, Mastercard’s continuous investments in upgrading its digital platforms and technology are likely to keep it ahead in the dynamic payments industry.
The move also showcases the company’s efforts to strengthen its foothold in international markets. Notably, Mastercard derives a major portion of revenues from international regions such as the Asia Pacific, Canada, Europe, Latin America, Africa and the Middle East. In 2019, the company’s strong international business not only aided top-line growth but also led to a 16% increase in its cross-border volume growth.
However, shares of the Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) company have gained 5.2% in a year, underperforming the industry’s growth of 11%. Nevertheless, we believe such initiatives are likely to continue driving Mastercard’s shares going forward.
Stocks to Consider
Some better-ranked stocks in the finance space are Cardtronics plc (NASDAQ:CATM) , AXA Equitable Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:EQH) and Qiwi plc (NASDAQ:QIWI) , each currently carrying a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
Cardtronics and AXA Equitable surpassed earnings estimates in the trailing four quarters by 27.21% and 16.35%, on average, respectively. Qiwi beat earnings estimates in three of the trailing four quarters by 72.3%, on average.
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Mastercard Incorporated (MA): Free Stock Analysis Report
Cardtronics PLC (CATM): Free Stock Analysis Report
QIWI PLC (QIWI): Free Stock Analysis Report
Equitable Holdings, Inc. (EQH): Free Stock Analysis Report
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