Mastercard forecasts downbeat revenue growth on economic slowdown

Mastercard’s current-quarter revenue growth forecast fell short of Wall Street estimates, fanning fears that the card company was heading into a much tougher environment in 2023 as the economy loses steam.

After the Federal Reserve’s rate hikes for most of last year, the economy has begun to show some signs of slowing down, with wide-ranging layoffs and fears of a recession spooking consumers.

Mastercard shares fell 1.4% to $377 in premarket trading, even after the company reported fourth-quarter profit ahead of estimates.

The company said it expects first-quarter revenue to grow at the “high-end of high-single digits range”. Analysts were expecting a growth of 10.7%, according to Refinitiv IBES data.

However, Mastercard, which has a bigger exposure to Asia Pacific than peer Visa, benefited in the fourth quarter from the reopening of borders and pent-up demand for travel in the region, which helped it offset the hit from 10% higher costs in the quarter.

Excluding one-time items, the New York-based card company earned $2.65 per share for the three months ended Dec. 31, compared with analysts’ average estimate of $2.58 per share, according to Refinitiv IBES data.

Net revenue climbed 12% to $5.8 billion.