Mastercard (MEX:MA) Beneish M-Score: -2.46 (As of Sep. 01, 2026)

Author: Vera Yuan Vera Yuan
Vera Yuan
Vera Yuan
Director of Data and Quant Analytics at GuruFocus
Focused on building reliable datasets, financial models, and research tools for value-minded investors. Committed to turning complex data into practical guidance for value-investing and long-term wealth.
Reviewed by: Charlie Tian Charlie Tian
Charlie Tian
Charlie Tian
Founder & CEO of GuruFocus
Dr. Charlie Tian is the founder and CEO of GuruFocus.com, a leading global investment research platform established in 2004. With a Ph.D. in physics, Dr. Tian transitioned from science to finance, applying a data-driven, disciplined approach to value investing.

MEX:MA Mastercard Inc MEX:MA
99 GF Score
Price MXN10,097.00
GF Value MXN11,622.75
Valuation Modestly Undervalued
! 3 Warning Signs
View Full Analysis

What is Mastercard Beneish M-Score?

Mastercard MEX:MA -0.47% 99 Beneish M-Score is -2.46 as of Sep. 01, 2026. GuruFocus rates MEX:MA with a GF Score™ of 99/100 and a GF Value™ of MXN11,622.75 (Modestly Undervalued). The stock has 3 warning signs investors should review. Among 487 Credit Services companies, Mastercard ranks better than 67.35% on this metric.

The zones of discrimination for M-Score is as such:

An M-Score of equal or less than -1.78 suggests that the company is unlikely to be a manipulator.
An M-Score of greater than -1.78 signals that the company is likely to be a manipulator.

Good Sign:

Beneish M-Score -2.46 no higher than -1.78, which implies that the company is unlikely to be a manipulator.

The historical rank and industry rank for Mastercard's Beneish M-Score or its related term are showing as below:

MEX:MA' s Beneish M-Score Range Over the Past 10 Years
Min: -2.91   Med: -2.48   Max: -1.83
Current: -2.46

During the past 13 years, the highest Beneish M-Score of Mastercard was -1.83. The lowest was -2.91. And the median was -2.48.


Mastercard Beneish M-Score Historical Data

* Premium members only.

The historical data trend for Mastercard's Beneish M-Score can be seen below:

* For Operating Data section: All numbers are indicated by the unit behind each term and all currency related amount are in USD.
* For other sections: All numbers are in millions except for per share data, ratio, and percentage. All currency related amount are indicated in the company's associated stock exchange currency.

Mastercard Beneish M-Score Chart

Mastercard Annual Data
Trend Dec16 Dec17 Dec18 Dec19 Dec20 Dec21 Dec22 Dec23 Dec24 Dec25
Beneish M-Score
Get a 7-Day Free Trial Premium Member Only Premium Member Only -2.72 -2.41 -2.36 -2.68 -2.54

Mastercard Quarterly Data
Sep21 Dec21 Mar22 Jun22 Sep22 Dec22 Mar23 Jun23 Sep23 Dec23 Mar24 Jun24 Sep24 Dec24 Mar25 Jun25 Sep25 Dec25 Mar26 Jun26
Beneish M-Score Get a 7-Day Free Trial Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only -2.76 -2.67 -2.54 -2.58 -2.46

MEX:MA vs V, AXP, COF: Beneish M-Score Comparison

For the Credit Services subindustry, Mastercard's Beneish M-Score, along with its competitors' market caps and Beneish M-Score data, can be viewed below:

* Competitive companies are chosen from companies within the same industry, with headquarter located in same country, with closest market capitalization; x-axis shows the market cap, and y-axis shows the term value; the bigger the dot, the larger the market cap. Note that "N/A" values will not show up in the chart.


Mastercard Beneish M-Score vs Credit Services Industry

For the Credit Services industry and Financial Services sector, Mastercard's Beneish M-Score distribution charts can be found below:

* The bar in red indicates where Mastercard's Beneish M-Score falls into.


MEX:MA
99GF Score
Mastercard Inc MEX:MA
Beneish M-Score is just one metric. See GF Score™, valuation, warning signs, and more.
View Full Analysis

Mastercard Beneish M-Score Calculation

The M-score was created by Professor Messod Beneish. Instead of measuring the bankruptcy risk (Altman Z-Score) or business trend (Piotroski F-Score), M-score can be used to detect the risk of earnings manipulation. This is the original research paper on M-score.

The M-Score Variables:

The M-score of Mastercard for today is based on a combination of the following eight different indices:

M=-4.84+0.92 * DSRI+0.528 * GMI+0.404 * AQI+0.892 * SGI+0.115 * DEPI
=-4.84+0.92 * 1.0701+0.528 * 0.9808+0.404 * 0.9429+0.892 * 1.0447+0.115 * 0.9965
-0.172 * SGAI+4.679 * TATA-0.327 * LVGI
-0.172 * 0.9946+4.679 * -0.020756-0.327 * 1.1071
=-2.54

* For Operating Data section: All numbers are indicated by the unit behind each term and all currency related amount are in USD.
* For other sections: All numbers are in millions except for per share data, ratio, and percentage. All currency related amount are indicated in the company's associated stock exchange currency.

This Year (Jun26) TTM:Last Year (Jun25) TTM:
Total Receivables was MXN88,065 Mil.
Revenue was 161874.373 + 151438.615 + 158558.194 + 157796.808 = MXN629,668 Mil.
Gross Profit was 127901.17 + 114706.005 + 125823.832 + 123071.238 = MXN491,502 Mil.
Total Current Assets was MXN462,782 Mil.
Total Assets was MXN1,006,650 Mil.
Property, Plant and Equipment(Net PPE) was MXN44,338 Mil.
Depreciation, Depletion and Amortization(DDA) was MXN21,451 Mil.
Selling, General, & Admin. Expense(SGA) was MXN93,380 Mil.
Total Current Liabilities was MXN436,295 Mil.
Long-Term Debt & Capital Lease Obligation was MXN387,089 Mil.
Net Income was 76566.212 + 70002.941 + 73103.142 + 72037.673 = MXN291,710 Mil.
Non Operating Income was -418.776 + 577.046 + -1692.536 + 275.163 = MXN-1,259 Mil.
Cash Flow from Operations was 65835.077 + 54080.067 + 90064.511 + 103883.205 = MXN313,863 Mil.
Total Receivables was MXN78,781 Mil.
Revenue was 153137.884 + 148321.95 + 156188.337 + 145097.821 = MXN602,746 Mil.
Gross Profit was 118266.205 + 113788.508 + 121713.865 + 107705.941 = MXN461,475 Mil.
Total Current Assets was MXN416,878 Mil.
Total Assets was MXN968,405 Mil.
Property, Plant and Equipment(Net PPE) was MXN41,895 Mil.
Depreciation, Depletion and Amortization(DDA) was MXN20,165 Mil.
Selling, General, & Admin. Expense(SGA) was MXN89,869 Mil.
Total Current Liabilities was MXN358,301 Mil.
Long-Term Debt & Capital Lease Obligation was MXN357,190 Mil.




1. DSRI = Days Sales in Receivables Index

Measured as the ratio of Revenue in Total Receivables in year t to year t-1.

A large increase in DSR could be indicative of revenue inflation.

DSRI=(Receivables_t / Revenue_t) / (Receivables_t-1 / Revenue_t-1)
=(88065.103 / 629667.99) / (78781.373 / 602745.992)
=0.13986 / 0.130704
=1.0701

2. GMI = Gross Margin Index

Measured as the ratio of gross margin in year t-1 to gross margin in year t.

Gross margin has deteriorated when this index is above 1. A firm with poorer prospects is more likely to manipulate earnings.

GMI=GrossMargin_t-1 / GrossMargin_t
=(GrossProfit_t-1 / Revenue_t-1) / (GrossProfit_t / Revenue_t)
=(461474.519 / 602745.992) / (491502.245 / 629667.99)
=0.76562 / 0.780574
=0.9808

3. AQI = Asset Quality Index

AQI is the ratio of asset quality in year t to year t-1.

Asset quality is measured as the ratio of non-current assets other than Property, Plant and Equipment to Total Assets.

AQI=(1 - (CurrentAssets_t + PPE_t) / TotalAssets_t) / (1 - (CurrentAssets_t-1 + PPE_t-1) / TotalAssets_t-1)
=(1 - (462782.378 + 44337.909) / 1006650.259) / (1 - (416878.488 + 41894.97) / 968404.585)
=0.49623 / 0.526258
=0.9429

4. SGI = Sales Growth Index

Ratio of Revenue in year t to sales in year t-1.

Sales growth is not itself a measure of manipulation. However, growth companies are likely to find themselves under pressure to manipulate in order to keep up appearances.

SGI=Sales_t / Sales_t-1
=Revenue_t / Revenue_t-1
=629667.99 / 602745.992
=1.0447

5. DEPI = Depreciation Index

Measured as the ratio of the rate of Depreciation, Depletion and Amortization in year t-1 to the corresponding rate in year t.

DEPI greater than 1 indicates that assets are being depreciated at a slower rate. This suggests that the firm might be revising useful asset life assumptions upwards, or adopting a new method that is income friendly.

DEPI=(Depreciation_t-1 / (Depreciaton_t-1 + PPE_t-1)) / (Depreciation_t / (Depreciaton_t + PPE_t))
=(20164.995 / (20164.995 + 41894.97)) / (21451.029 / (21451.029 + 44337.909))
=0.324928 / 0.326058
=0.9965

Note: If the Depreciation, Depletion and Amortization data is not available, we assume that the depreciation rate is constant and set the Depreciation Index to 1.

6. SGAI = Sales, General and Administrative expenses Index

The ratio of Selling, General, & Admin. Expense(SGA) to Sales in year t relative to year t-1.

SGA expenses index > 1 means that the company is becoming less efficient in generate sales.

SGAI=(SGA_t / Sales_t) / (SGA_t-1 /Sales_t-1)
=(93380.238 / 629667.99) / (89868.586 / 602745.992)
=0.148301 / 0.149099
=0.9946

7. LVGI = Leverage Index

The ratio of total debt to Total Assets in year t relative to yeat t-1.

An LVGI > 1 indicates an increase in leverage

LVGI=((LTD_t + CurrentLiabilities_t) / TotalAssets_t) / ((LTD_t-1 + CurrentLiabilities_t-1) / TotalAssets_t-1)
=((387088.616 + 436294.796) / 1006650.259) / ((357189.924 + 358300.847) / 968404.585)
=0.817944 / 0.738835
=1.1071

8. TATA = Total Accruals to Total Assets

Total accruals calculated as the change in working capital accounts other than cash less depreciation.

TATA=(IncomefromContinuingOperations_t - CashFlowsfromOperations_t) / TotalAssets_t
=(NetIncome_t - NonOperatingIncome_t - CashFlowsfromOperations_t) / TotalAssets_t
=(291709.968 - -1259.103 - 313862.86) / 1006650.259
=-0.020756

An M-Score of equal or less than -1.78 suggests that the company is unlikely to be a manipulator. An M-Score of greater than -1.78 signals that the company is likely to be a manipulator.

Mastercard has a M-score of -2.54 suggests that the company is unlikely to be a manipulator.

Frequently Asked Questions Learn more about Beneish M-Score →
What does a Beneish M-Score of -2.46 mean?
Mastercard (MEX:MA) has a Beneish M-Score of -2.46 as of Sep. 01, 2026. The Beneish M-score measures the likelihood of earnings manipulation. View historical data on Mastercard and its competitors. According to the industry distribution chart, Mastercard ranks #159 out of 487 companies in the Credit Services industry, placing it in the top 32.6%.
Is Mastercard's Beneish M-Score too high?
Mastercard's current Beneish M-Score is -2.46. Based on the distribution chart, Mastercard ranks #159 out of 487 companies in the Credit Services industry, which is above the industry midpoint. Overall, Mastercard has a GF Score™ of 99/100 and is considered Modestly Undervalued, reflecting its overall financial health beyond just this single metric.
How does Mastercard's Beneish M-Score compare to V and AXP?
According to the Credit Services industry distribution chart, Mastercard ranks #159 out of 487 companies for Beneish M-Score. This puts Mastercard in the upper half of its industry. See the competitive comparison table and distribution chart on this page for a detailed peer-by-peer breakdown.
What is a good Beneish M-Score for a Credit Services company?
A good Beneish M-Score depends on the Credit Services industry context. However, Beneish M-Score should not be evaluated in isolation — investors should consider it alongside profitability, growth, and financial strength metrics. Use the industry distribution chart on this page to see where any company falls relative to its peers.
What does a high Beneish M-Score mean?
A high Beneish M-Score can signal that a stock is expensive relative to its fundamentals. The Beneish M-score measures the likelihood of earnings manipulation. View historical data on Mastercard and its competitors. Mastercard's current Beneish M-Score is -2.46. However, context matters — high-growth companies often justify higher valuations. Always evaluate alongside other metrics like GF Score™ and GF Value™.
Is Mastercard stock overvalued right now?
Based on GuruFocus' analysis, Mastercard (MEX:MA) is currently considered Modestly Undervalued. The stock's GF Value™ is MXN11,622.75, compared to a current price of MXN10,097.00 — trading 13.1% below its estimated fair value. The current Beneish M-Score is -2.46. Mastercard's overall GF Score™ is 99/100 with 3 warning signs to review. Investors should evaluate multiple metrics — including profitability, growth, and financial strength — before making a decision.
How is Beneish M-Score calculated?
Beneish M-Score is calculated from a company's financial statements. For Mastercard (MEX:MA), the current Beneish M-Score is -2.46 as of Sep. 01, 2026. GuruFocus calculates this using data sourced from SEC filings and annual reports. See the calculation section and 30-year financial data on this page for the full breakdown.

Is Mastercard (MEX:MA) Overvalued in 2026?

Based on GuruFocus' analysis, Mastercard stock appears to be undervalued. The current stock price of MXN10,097.00 is trading 13.1% below its estimated GF Value™ of MXN11,622.75. GuruFocus considers Mastercard to be Modestly Undervalued.

Key valuation signals for MEX:MA:

  • Beneish M-Score: -2.46
  • GF Value™: MXN11,622.75 vs. price of MXN10,097.00 (13.1% below fair value)
  • GF Score™: 99/100 with 3 warning signs

No single metric tells the full story. See the MEX:MA stock analysis page for a complete view including 30-year financials, guru trades, and insider activity.


Mastercard Business Description

Address 2000 Purchase Street, Purchase, NY, USA, 10577
Mastercard is the second-largest payment processor in the world, having processed close to $11 trillion in volume during 2025. Mastercard operates in over 200 countries and processes transactions in over 150 currencies.
99GF Score

Get the complete analysis for MEX:MA

Beneish M-Score is just one metric. See GF Value™, 30-year financials, guru trades, warning signs, and more.

MXN10,097.00
Price
MXN11,622.75
GF Value