MasterCard (MA) is expected to report Q4 earnings before the market open on Thursday, February 4, with a conference call scheduled for 9am ET.

GUIDANCE

The consensus estimate is $2.46 for EPS and $1.3B for revenue, according to First Call.  In early November the company reported Q3 EPS $3.48 vs. consensus of $2.94 and revenue revenue $1.4B vs. consensus of $1.35B.  On the Q3 conference call CFO Martina Hund-Mejean said that for Q4, the company expects its rebates and incentives line to be significantly higher versus Q4 of last year due to new and renewed customer agreements, as well as rebates relating to recently implemented pricing initiatives.  She said the company continues to expect FY09 total operating expenses will be down on a year-over-year basis and now expects to incur additional severance charges in Q4.  MasterCard expects to achieve at least 20% net income growth for 2009, the executive said.  Selander noted that the company "feels better" about the current economic environment and sees stabilization and improvement in payment trends.

ANALYSTS' VIEWS

On January 22, Oppenheimer said, Visa and MasterCard should report healthy earnings this year.  The firm predicts that the earnings of both Visa (V) and MasterCard (MA) will increase 20% or more during 2010.  The firm also expects the stocks’ multiple to increase slightly and it reiterates Outperform ratings on both stocks.  On January 29, Lazard Capital said, MasterCard’s recent weakness was a buying opportunity.  The firm recommends using the recent weakness in MasterCard shares as a buying opportunity.  The firm expects the company’s Q4 results on February 4 to "satisfy investors" and reiterates a Buy rating on the stock.