The biggest payments and financial technology companies by market capitalization delivered positive performances year over year in the quarter that ended March 31.
In the financial technology space, the EPS of Fiserv Inc. climbed to $1.02 from 45 cents year over year, while that of MSCI Inc. rose to $2.78 from $2.36, according to S&P Global Market Intelligence data.
In the payments space, Mastercard Inc. reported EPS of $2.68, up from $1.83 in the first quarter of 2021. Visa Inc.'s EPS increased to $1.70 per share from the year-ago period's $1.38.
Payments companies
Mastercard CEO Michael Miebach said the company started 2022 with robust revenue and earnings growth as cross-border volumes grew 53% versus a year ago on a local currency basis even in the context of the challenging geopolitical environment amid Russia's invasion of Ukraine. "As of March, cross-border travel is above 2019 levels for the first time since the pandemic began, and ahead of our expectations," Miebach said.
Visa said net revenues climbed 25% to $7.2 billion, driven by the year-over-year growth in payments volume, cross-border volume and processed transactions.
Fintech companies
MSCI Chairman and CEO Henry Fernandez said the company posted its "best first quarter ever" for new recurring subscription sales despite geopolitical and economic turmoil.
"Not only are we helping clients navigate market volatility and asset rotations, we are also helping them capitalize on structural changes in the global investment landscape, such as the low-carbon energy transition," Fernandez said. "This has made MSCI solutions increasingly valuable to clients beyond our traditional base, including wealth managers, hedge funds and insurance companies."
Fiserv, whose EPS soared 127% compared to the prior-year period, said the first quarter includes a $147 million pretax gain from the previously disclosed sale of certain merchant contracts from a merchant alliance joint venture. Fiserv President and CEO Frank Bisignano said the company's outperformance puts it in a good position to meet or exceed its outlook for the full year.
"As we evaluate the year ahead, we believe it is prudent to leave our 2022 guidance unchanged, given the uncertain macroeconomic backdrop with high inflation, rising interest rates and geopolitical issues looming. Accordingly, we are maintaining our 2022 outlook for organic revenue growth of 7% to 9%," Bisignano said.
Looking ahead
Like Fiserv, payments company American Express Co. also reaffirmed its full-year guidance for revenue growth, which is 18% to 20%. American Express' EPS slightly dipped to $2.73 from the year-ago period's $2.74.
"We remain confident that successful execution of our strategy will position us well as we seek to achieve our long-term growth plan aspirations of revenue growth in excess of 10% and mid-teens EPS growth in 2024 and beyond," American Express Chairman and CEO Stephen Squeri said.