Mastercard vs PayPal Holdings (MA vs PYPL)
Side by side from their SEC filings: revenue, margins, growth, returns and valuation, plus short interest, insider activity and institutional ownership.
Mastercard has grown revenue faster over the last 4 fiscal years (+73.6% cumulative vs +30.7%). Mastercard runs the higher operating margin (57.6% vs 18.3%). PayPal Holdings trades at the lower trailing P/E (10.3x vs 31.2x).
About Mastercard
Mastercard Inc operates a global payments network that facilitates electronic payments between consumers, merchants, financial institutions, and governments. The company provides payment processing services, including credit, debit, and prepaid card transactions, and offers related products and services to consumers and businesses worldwide. Mastercard serves a broad range of customers, including cardholders, merchants, issuers, and acquirers, across multiple countries.
About PayPal Holdings
PayPal Holdings, Inc. operates a global digital payments platform that connects consumers and merchants in approximately 200 markets. It provides consumers with digital wallets, payment solutions, and financial management tools, including the ability to shop, send and receive money, and use credit products like buy now, pay later. For merchants, PayPal offers online and in-person payment processing, checkout solutions, business financing, and risk management services to help grow their businesses.
Head to head (MA FY2025 vs PYPL FY2025)
| Metric | MAFY2025 | PYPLFY2025 |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $32.79B | $33.17B |
| Revenue growth (YoY) | 16.4% | 4.3% |
| Gross margin | — | — |
| Operating margin | 57.6% | 18.3% |
| Net margin | 45.6% | 15.8% |
| Net income | $14.97B | $5.23B |
| Diluted EPS | $16.52 | $5.41 |
| FCF margin | 52.3% | 16.8% |
| ROE | 193.2% | 25.8% |
| Long-term debt / equity | 2.36× | 0.49× |
| Market cap | $496.33B | $46.72B |
| P/E | 31.2× | 10.3× |
Fundamentals are from each company’s SEC filings (MA FY2025, PYPL FY2025). ROE is net income over fiscal-year-end equity; long-term debt / equity counts non-current term debt only. P/E and market cap are derived from stored market prices, last retrieved on a rolling basis and typically within the past week.
Five-year trend (as reported)
| Revenue | FY2021 | FY2022 | FY2023 | FY2024 | FY2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MA | $18.88B | $22.24B | $25.10B | $28.17B | $32.79B |
| PYPL | $25.37B | $27.52B | $29.77B | $31.80B | $33.17B |
Peer standing
Where each company ranks among the 425 Financials companies, on the same scale. Each figure is ranked only against peers that report it. Percentiles describe position in the distribution, not a rating.
| Metric | MA | PYPL |
|---|---|---|
| Operating margin | 57.6%97th percentile of 145 | 18.3%56th percentile of 145 |
| Net margin | 45.6%95th percentile of 376 | 15.8%52nd percentile of 376 |
| FCF margin | 52.3%91st percentile of 271 | 16.8%47th percentile of 271 |
| Revenue growth (YoY) | +16.4%63rd percentile of 421 | +4.3%27th percentile of 421 |
| ROE | 193.2%99th percentile of 375 | 25.8%90th percentile of 375 |
| P/E | 31.2×88th percentile of 320 | 10.3×32nd percentile of 320 |
| Long-term debt / equity | 2.36×93rd percentile of 195 | 0.49×61st percentile of 195 |
| Short interest (days to cover) | 3.17d30th percentile of 419 | 2.70d23rd percentile of 419 |
Short interest
| FINRA settlement data | MA | PYPL |
|---|---|---|
| Shares sold short | 7.2M | 29.3M |
| Change vs prior settlement | -5.1% | -12.1% |
| Days to cover | 3.17 | 2.70 |
| As of settlement | 2026-09-15 | 2026-09-15 |
Source: FINRA Consolidated Short Interest. FINRA is the owner and source of the FINRA-supplied data; republishing or redistributing it is not permitted. Not presented as a percentage of float. No FINRA endorsement of this product is implied.
Insider activity (last 90 days)
| Form 4 activity (codes P/S) | MA | PYPL |
|---|---|---|
| Buys | 0 | 0 |
| Sells | 42 ($50.9M) | 11 ($848,121) |
Non-derivative purchases (code P) and sales (code S) reported on SEC Form 4, which may be open-market or private (grants, exercises and tax withholding excluded). For context, about 15% of covered companies saw any reported insider purchase (code P) in a 90-day window.
Held by the same investors
7 tracked 13F managers hold both Mastercard and PayPal Holdings as of their latest quarterly filings: AQR Capital Management, Citadel Advisors, D. E. Shaw, Gotham Asset Management, Millennium Management, Two Sigma Investments, Yacktman Asset Management. See which superinvestors hold your own portfolio with the smart money checker.
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Data sourced from SEC EDGAR. Figures are as-reported and may be unaudited or restated; verify against the source filings before relying on them. Comparisons are descriptive (higher or lower on a reported figure), not a rating or a recommendation. Informational only. Not investment advice.