GS vs MA: Which Is the Better Buy?
Side-by-side comparison of The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. and Mastercard Incorporated — fair value, conviction, valuation metrics, and QuantHub research signals.
Updated 2026-04-11.
The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. · Financial Services
$907.80
-3.1% upside to fair value
Low Conviction
Grade C+
VS
Mastercard Incorporated · Financial Services
$498.66
+22.3% upside to fair value
High Conviction
Grade A-
QuantHub Verdict
MA has more upside to fair value
(+22.3%).
GS trades at a lower forward P/E
(15.6x).
These are model outputs — not personalized investment advice.
See all research →
Valuation & Fundamentals
| Metric |
GS |
MA |
| Current Price |
$907.80 |
$498.66 |
| Fair Value Estimate |
$880.00 |
$610.00 |
| Upside to Fair Value |
-3.1%
|
+22.3%
|
| Market Cap |
$269.4B |
$445.0B |
| Forward P/E |
15.6x
|
25.5x
|
| EV / EBITDA |
29.7x
|
22.4x
|
| Price / Sales |
2.1x
|
13.6x
|
| Price / FCF |
—
|
26.0x
|
| Revenue Growth YoY |
+9.0%
|
+16.4%
|
| Gross Margin |
47.5%
|
83.4%
|
| Operating Margin |
17.5%
|
59.2%
|
| Return on Equity |
13.8%
|
198.4%
|
| Dividend Yield |
1.71% |
0.65% |
| FCF Yield |
—
|
3.84%
|
| Analyst Consensus |
Buy
|
Strong Buy
|
Investment Thesis
Goldman Sachs remains the premier global investment bank with dominant franchises in M&A advisory, equities trading, and asset management. FY2025 delivered $58.3B net revenues, 15% ROE, and $51.32 diluted EPS, powered by record equities trading and a resurgent IB pipeline. The stock has pulled back 8% from January highs near $985 but still trades at 2.27x book value, well above the 5-year median …
Mastercard operates one of the world's two dominant payment networks, processing over $9 trillion in gross dollar volume annually across 220+ countries. The business generates 83% gross margins and 46% net margins with zero credit risk because Mastercard never lends money, only collecting tolls on every transaction. Value-Added Services (analytics, fraud prevention, cybersecurity) now comprise 41…
Accumulation Zones
| Metric |
GS |
MA |
| Zone Low |
$600.00 |
$460.00 |
| Zone High |
$680.00 |
$515.00 |
| In Buy Zone? |
No
|
Yes
|