Citi Says Sell, Deutshe Says Buy MasterCard

Citi reiterates a 'Sell' rating on MasterCard (NYSE: MA). Price target $140

Citi analyst says, "While the stock has been strong recently and we have underestimated expense cuts, we believe slower net rev growth from the global consumer pullback will drive multiple contraction. We also believe the two key positive catalysts (expense cuts and price increases) are past the halfway mark. We are maintaining our est's and would expect the same for consensus. MA is a high-quality franchise, but we believe the multiple is stretched given the environment. We also believe the US consumer will not snap back as strong as some expect, as many are overextended and credit availability is constrained. Prefer Visa (NYSE: V) due to debit." (Citi maintains a Hold rating on Visa)

MasterCard Incorporated (MasterCard) is a global payment solutions company that provides a variety of services in support of the credit, debit and related payment programs of over 24,000 financial institutions and other entities that are its customers.

To see more analyst (all different :--) ratings on MA click below:

• May 4, 2009 07:49 AM Goldman Sachs Removed Mastercard (MA) from its Conviction Buy List
• May 4, 2009 07:35 AM Deutsche Bank Upgrades MasterCard (MA) to Buy, To Cheap Compared to Visa
• May 1, 2009 06:29 PM Buckingham Research Reiterates an 'Accumulate' Rating on MasterCard (MA); Raises 2009 EPS Estimates

Stocks Mentioned

MA 178.99 MasterCard

+6.09 +3.52%  Volume: 4,390,069 Track MA

V 68.20  Visa

+3.19 +4.91%  Volume: 19,735,959 Track V

Interchange Fees, Visa, MasterCard, Citi, Sell, Buy, Accumulate