Visa vs. Mastercard: two 50%-margin networks, Ackman buying both, and a tie since 2008

Visa and Mastercard run the two largest card payment networks, and their financial profiles are unusually close. At the October 2, 2026 close, Visa was worth $678.0 billion and Mastercard $483.8 billion. Both trade at about 30 times their last twelve months of earnings; both keep about half of every dollar of revenue as profit.

Visa’s fiscal year runs from October to September, so its “fiscal 2025” is October 2024 to September 2025. Fiscal 2026 ended on September 30, 2026, but its 10-K comes out in November. Mastercard reports on the calendar year.

In the latest quarter (April–June 2026), Visa’s revenue grew 14.4% and Mastercard’s 14.1%. Visa’s profit grew only 6.8%, against Mastercard’s 18.6%, but Visa’s quarter included $563 million of severance costs and a $237 million litigation provision, so the gap is not a sign of weaker economics.

How big the networks are

The cleanest comparison comes from Visa’s own 10-K, which shows both networks for 2024 using the same source (the Nilson Report): Visa processed $13.4 trillion of payments volume against Mastercard’s $8.0 trillion (1.68 times), 311 billion transactions against 204 billion, with 4.8 billion cards against 3.1 billion. Each company’s 2025 figures use different definitions and periods and should not be set against each other.

Their revenue breakdowns also differ. Visa reports gross revenue by type and subtracts the incentives it pays to banks ($15.8 billion in fiscal 2025); Mastercard splits revenue into its payment network and value-added services. Both report value-added services — $10.9 billion at Visa and $13.3 billion at Mastercard — each by its own definition.

Mostly buybacks, a little dividend

Both pay small dividends — under 0.8% yield — and return most of their cash through buybacks. From 2016 to 2025, Visa spent $105.2 billion on repurchases and $28.4 billion on dividends; Mastercard $69.5 billion and $16.8 billion. By our count, Visa has raised its annual dividend for 17 straight years (2009–2025) and Mastercard for 14 (2012–2025); neither company states such a number itself.

The litigation number that is easy to misread

Visa estimates that $17.4 billion of interchange fees are at issue in the U.S. lawsuits that remain unresolved. That is the amount being disputed, not what Visa will pay. Visa funds its litigation escrow deposits by reducing the rate at which banks’ Class B shares convert into Class A shares — it made deposits of $125 million, $250 million and $405 million in 2026 — and says the effect is the same as a share repurchase.

Who moved in 2026

Visa is held by 17 of the 38 managers this site tracks, up from 12 a year earlier; Mastercard fell from 13 to 11 in the second quarter. The notable move was Bill Ackman’s: Pershing Square opened positions in both in the second quarter of 2026 — $1.12 billion in Visa and $1.09 billion in Mastercard, 11.4% of its portfolio together. None of its 13F filings since 2016 had held either. Visa’s largest holder among the 38 is Chris Hohn’s TCI, with 30.5 million shares ($10.5 billion), the most in its history; TCI has held Visa since 2019. Akre Capital, a long-time holder of both, has been selling: its Visa stake is down 79% from its 2021 peak and its Mastercard stake down 66% from 2022, after twelve straight quarterly cuts. Those values are at the June 30 prices; by October 2, Visa was 5.1% higher and Mastercard 7.5%.

No insider at either company bought shares in the twelve months to early October 2026. Visa insiders sold $54.8 million under 10b5-1 plans (including $38.7 million by chief executive Ryan McInerney) and $31.5 million without a plan, led by Kelly Mahon Tullier, who exercised options and sold $20.9 million on the same form. At Mastercard, all 70 sales — $66.6 million, including $27.9 million by chief executive Michael Miebach — were made under 10b5-1 plans. Mastercard also changed chief financial officer on August 3, 2026, when Ling Hai succeeded Sachin Mehra.

$1,000 since 2008

Visa went public on March 19, 2008, so the longest common window starts at the end of that month. Since then the lead has changed hands 13 times — Visa was ahead for 117 months and Mastercard for 105 — and Mastercard has been in front since January 2019, finishing just 3.4% ahead. Over ten years Mastercard led every single month. Over five years, both trailed the S&P 500.

Daily data is on the Visa and Mastercard pages. Not investment advice.