Which is better, MA or MCO?

On the Buffett-Fit framework, Mastercard Incorporated (MA) currently grades higher than MCO — 84/100 (A grade) vs 71/100 (B). That said, "better" depends on which framework you trust — MA wins on Warren Buffett, Benjamin Graham, Philip Fisher, Peter Lynch, Joel Greenblatt, Charlie Munger, and Terry Smith; MCO wins on none. The full pillar breakdown is on this page.

Should I buy MA or MCO?

This page is an educational comparison, not investment advice. Both MA and MCO are graded against the same Buffett 5-pillar framework (moat, earnings durability, management quality, financial health, valuation) plus six other documented investor frameworks. Read the side-by-side breakdown to see which one matches the criteria you care about most — and always do your own research before making any investment decision.

Is MA better than MCO for value investing?

On the Buffett-style value-investing framework, MA currently grades higher — 84/100 vs 71/100, a 13-point gap. The gap is driven by which pillars each stock passes; the table on this page shows moat, durability, management, financial health, and valuation side-by-side.

What's the difference between MA and MCO on Warren Buffett's framework?

Both stocks are evaluated on the same five pillars: economic moat (durable competitive advantage), earnings durability (consistent profitability), management quality (capital allocation), financial health (conservative balance sheet), and valuation (margin of safety). MA currently scores 84/100 (A grade); MCO scores 71/100 (B grade). The "Where each wins" section on this page breaks down which pillar each stock dominates.

Which has the stronger moat, MA or MCO?

Moat strength is one of the five pillars in the Buffett-Fit score on this page. MA and MCO are each scored on ROIC sustainability, gross-margin durability, and qualitative signals like brand strength, switching costs, network effects, and regulatory barriers. The pillar breakdown on this page shows the moat sub-score side-by-side so you can see which one has the more durable competitive advantage.

Which is more undervalued, MA or MCO?

Valuation is one of the five Buffett-Fit pillars on this page. Both stocks are scored on owner-earnings yield, price-to-intrinsic-value vs the underlying compounding rate, and the margin of safety relative to a conservative DCF. The valuation sub-score in the table below tells you which one currently trades at a more attractive price relative to its underlying business quality.

Are MA and MCO both Financial Services stocks?

Yes — both Mastercard Incorporated (MA) and Moody's Corporation (MCO) operate in the Financial Services sector. That makes this a direct sector-peer comparison, which is the apples-to-apples way to use the Buffett-Fit framework: the score weighs each stock against its sector's specific quality and valuation benchmarks (sector-relative bonus), so the cross-stock comparison isn't distorted by inter-sector base-rate differences.

Is this MA vs MCO comparison investment advice?

No. This page is an educational pattern-match against documented public frameworks (Buffett, Graham, Fisher, Lynch, Greenblatt, Munger, Smith), not personalised investment advice. The scores reflect how closely each stock matches each framework's documented criteria — they are not buy/hold/sell recommendations. Always do your own research and consult a licensed financial adviser for personalised advice.

Stock comparison

Mastercard

Moody's

Scored across Buffett, Graham, Lynch and Greenblatt - plus a side-by-side metric table covering valuation, quality, growth and balance sheet.

Mastercard

Market cap

$437.4B

Sector

Financials

MCO

Moody's

Market cap

$77.68B

Sector

Financials

Overall winner

Mastercard MA

Wins on the combined sum of fit scores across all four strategies. Per-strategy breakdown below.

Fit scores by strategy

Strategy	MA	MCO	Winner
Warren Buffett	84A	71B	MA
Benjamin Graham	84A	83A	MA
Philip Fisher	79B	62C	MA
Peter Lynch	72B	68B	MA
Joel Greenblatt	84A	58C	MA
Charlie Munger	87A	79B	MA
Terry Smith	91A	75B	MA

Side-by-side metrics

Metric	MA	MCO
Market cap	$437.4B	$77.68B
P/E (TTM)	28.3x	30.4x
EV/EBIT	23.1x	23.4x
ROIC (TTM)	51.85%	23.11%
Gross margin	82.96%	69.69%
Net margin	45.88%	31.69%
Revenue CAGR 5y	14.79%	5.55%
EPS CAGR 5y	17.14%	3.68%
Debt / Equity	2.8x	2.4x
Dividend yield	0.66%	0.92%

Where each one wins

The metrics with the biggest gap between the two - sorted so the most decisive edges read first.

MA leads on

Market cap$437.4Bvs $77.68B+82%
EPS CAGR 5y17.14%vs 3.68%+79%
Revenue CAGR 5y14.79%vs 5.55%+62%
ROIC (TTM)51.85%vs 23.11%+55%

MCO leads on

Dividend yield0.92%vs 0.66%+28%
Debt / Equity2.4xvs 2.8x+13%

More like MA

MA vs SLDE MA vs HLNE MA vs KNSL MA vs SPGI MA vs EVR MA vs WT

More like MCO

MCO vs SLDE MCO vs HLNE MCO vs KNSL MCO vs SPGI MCO vs EVR MCO vs WT

Read the full Buffett-Brain analysis for MA Read the full Buffett-Brain analysis for MCO

Related on invest-like

Strongest Moat Highest ROIC Warren Buffett strategy Economic Moat

Key terms in this analysis

ROIC Free Cash Flow (FCF)Economic Moat P/E Ratio Margin of Safety Quality Score

Educational tool. Fit scores are deterministic projections from public financials onto each investor's published criteria - not personal recommendations or advice.

Stock comparison

Mastercard

Moody's

Scored across Buffett, Graham, Lynch and Greenblatt - plus a side-by-side metric table covering valuation, quality, growth and balance sheet.

Mastercard

Market cap

$437.4B

Sector

Financials

MCO

Moody's

Market cap

$77.68B

Sector

Financials

Overall winner

Mastercard MA

Wins on the combined sum of fit scores across all four strategies. Per-strategy breakdown below.

Fit scores by strategy

Strategy	MA	MCO	Winner
Warren Buffett	84A	71B	MA
Benjamin Graham	84A	83A	MA
Philip Fisher	79B	62C	MA
Peter Lynch	72B	68B	MA
Joel Greenblatt	84A	58C	MA
Charlie Munger	87A	79B	MA
Terry Smith	91A	75B	MA

Side-by-side metrics

Metric	MA	MCO
Market cap	$437.4B	$77.68B
P/E (TTM)	28.3x	30.4x
EV/EBIT	23.1x	23.4x
ROIC (TTM)	51.85%	23.11%
Gross margin	82.96%	69.69%
Net margin	45.88%	31.69%
Revenue CAGR 5y	14.79%	5.55%
EPS CAGR 5y	17.14%	3.68%
Debt / Equity	2.8x	2.4x
Dividend yield	0.66%	0.92%

Where each one wins

The metrics with the biggest gap between the two - sorted so the most decisive edges read first.

MA leads on

Market cap$437.4Bvs $77.68B+82%
EPS CAGR 5y17.14%vs 3.68%+79%
Revenue CAGR 5y14.79%vs 5.55%+62%
ROIC (TTM)51.85%vs 23.11%+55%

MCO leads on

Dividend yield0.92%vs 0.66%+28%
Debt / Equity2.4xvs 2.8x+13%

More like MA

MA vs SLDE MA vs HLNE MA vs KNSL MA vs SPGI MA vs EVR MA vs WT

More like MCO

MCO vs SLDE MCO vs HLNE MCO vs KNSL MCO vs SPGI MCO vs EVR MCO vs WT

Read the full Buffett-Brain analysis for MA Read the full Buffett-Brain analysis for MCO

Related on invest-like

Strongest Moat Highest ROIC Warren Buffett strategy Economic Moat

Key terms in this analysis

ROIC Free Cash Flow (FCF)Economic Moat P/E Ratio Margin of Safety Quality Score

Educational tool. Fit scores are deterministic projections from public financials onto each investor's published criteria - not personal recommendations or advice.