SPGI vs NDAQ vs MA Stock Comparison

S&P Global, Nasdaq and Mastercard Prices as of Oct 23, 2026 Peers: Industry group
SPGI S&P Global Inc.
$450.20 +10.7% 1M -6.7% 1Y
Market cap
$132.84B
P/E
27.0x
Revenue (TTM)
$16.12B
Div. yield
0.01%
Financial Data and Analytics Financial Services
3 wins
NDAQ Nasdaq, Inc.
$102.56 +7.5% 1M +15.5% 1Y
Market cap
$58.54B
P/E
28.1x
Revenue (TTM)
$9.15B
Div. yield
–
Exchanges Financial Services
1 win
MA Mastercard Inc
$623.47 +11.3% 1M +8.7% 1Y
Market cap
$541.87B
P/E
33.3x
Revenue (TTM)
$35.08B
Div. yield
–
Payment Networks Financial Services
7 wins

Head to Head

11 decided of 12

Mastercard leads on 7 of the 12 questions below (Mastercard 7, S&P Global 3, Nasdaq 1). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionSPGINDAQMALeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $132.84B $58.54B $541.87B MA
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 27.0x 28.1x 33.3x SPGI
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 23.9x 25.6x 29.7x SPGI
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +9.7% +11.5% +16.0% MA
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 30.5% 22.8% 46.3% MA
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 12.1% 10.5% 59.0% MA
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 1.3x 2.4x 0.6x MA
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.01% 0.00% 0.00% –
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months -6.7% +15.5% +8.7% NDAQ
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years 0.0%/yr +8.8%/yr +11.7%/yr MA
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 30.9% 28.4% 22.6% MA
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 58/100 56/100 51/100 SPGI

Percentile Scorecard

SPGINDAQMA

Each axis is the mean percentile of its metrics against the company's industry group. 100 is the best in the group, 50 the middle.

Scores by Axis

AxisSPGINDAQMA
Valuation 24 #722 of 945 43 #56 of 97 13 #822 of 945
Growth 68 #261 of 822 46 #38 of 69 68 #268 of 822
Profitability 89 #95 of 835 80 #15 of 70 99 #11 of 835
Financial Health 67 #298 of 905 48 #53 of 101 49 #461 of 905
Shareholder Returns 43 #411 of 726 62 #16 of 40 28 #521 of 726
Overall 58 56 51
  • SPGI ranked among 1,011 companies in Financial Services
  • NDAQ ranked among 112 companies in Capital Markets
  • MA ranked among 1,011 companies in Financial Services

Price Performance

Price return, split-adjusted, before dividends. Click a name to hide or show it.

Returns

PeriodSPGINDAQMASPY
1 month +10.7%+7.5%+11.3% -1.0%
3 months +5.6%+11.4%+15.5% +2.9%
6 months +3.1%+14.1%+23.7% +6.4%
Year to date -13.9%+5.6%+9.2% +11.4%
1 year -6.7%+15.5%+8.7% +13.1%
3 years +29.4%+107.4%+61.1% +79.4%
3 years, per year +9.0%+27.5%+17.3% +21.5%
5 years -0.1%+52.5%+73.8% +67.7%
5 years, per year 0.0%+8.8%+11.7% +10.9%
10 years +263.1%+364.9%+506.2% +255.2%
10 years, per year +13.8%+16.6%+19.7% +13.5%

Risk

MeasureSPGINDAQMASPY
Volatility, 1Y 30.9%28.4%22.6% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 35.5%29.9%22.4% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 0.340.560.27 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y -0.220.540.38 1.03
Max drawdown, 5Y -40.2%-33.4%-28.6% -25.4%
From 52-week high -17.6%-0.7%-1.5% -2.5%
52-week high $546.35$103.30$632.81 $779.14
52-week low $386.35$76.85$471.55 $631.97

Valuation History

Weekly multiples on trailing twelve-month fundamentals. Negative or extreme readings (a loss year, a collapsed denominator) are left out so the chart stays readable.

MultipleSPGINDAQMA
P/E now vs peer median 27.0xmedian 13.4x 27.5xmedian 29.4x 33.8xmedian 13.4x
P/S now vs peer median 8.2xmedian 3.2x 6.3xmedian 2.8x 15.5xmedian 3.2x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 17.2xmedian 5.9x 19.3xmedian 12.8x 23.1xmedian 5.9x
P/FCF now vs peer median 23.8xmedian 11.1x 25.4xmedian 15.9x 32.5xmedian 11.1x
P/B now vs peer median 4.2xmedian 1.2x 4.8xmedian 2.5x 96.7xmedian 1.2x
PEG now vs peer median 0.86median 0.89 1.50median 0.51 1.73median 0.89

Financial History

Reported figures by fiscal period, placed on the calendar year (or quarter) each period ended in, so companies with different fiscal years line up.

Trailing twelve monthsSPGINDAQMA
Revenue $16.12B $9.15B $35.08B
Gross profit $11.43B $5.78B –
Operating income $7.16B $2.73B $20.47B
Net income $5.32B $2.08B $16.26B
Free cash flow $5.57B $2.26B $16.70B
EPS (diluted) $16.66 $3.70 $18.41
Cash & equivalents $4.13B $365.00M $11.29B
Total debt $15.17B $8.74B $81.59B
Shares (diluted) 295.50M 563.31M 883.00M
Enterprise value $123.43B $55.98B $501.79B

All Metrics

58 metrics · best in bold

Bold marks the best reading: the lowest positive value for multiples, leverage and payout, the highest for everything else. The bar under each value is its percentile against that company's own peers. Hover a value for its rank and the peer median.

Valuation

12 metrics
MetricSPGINDAQMA
P/E 27.0x 27.5x 33.8x
P/FCF 23.8x 25.4x 32.5x
P/Operating cash flow 23.2x 22.5x 31.1x
P/S 8.2x 6.3x 15.5x
P/B 4.2x 4.8x 96.7x
P/Tangible book 8.3x 9.7x 3,744x
EV/EBITDA 17.2x 19.3x 23.1x
EV/EBIT 20.1x 24.0x 27.2x
EV/Revenue 8.9x 7.2x 15.9x
EV/FCF 25.8x 29.0x 33.3x
EV/Operating cash flow 25.1x 25.7x 31.9x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 0.86 1.50 1.73

Growth

14 metrics
MetricSPGINDAQMA
Revenue growth (1Y) 9.7% 11.5% 16.0%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 10.2% 15.1% 14.1%
Gross profit growth (1Y) 11.5% 13.7% –
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) 12.9% 16.2% –
Operating income growth (1Y) 22.0% 23.1% 21.3%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) 25.5% 20.1% 16.1%
Net income growth (1Y) 22.3% 28.2% 19.7%
Net income CAGR (3Y) 26.8% 23.6% 16.7%
EPS growth (1Y) 27.1% 31.8% 23.2%
EPS CAGR (3Y) 31.4% 18.3% 19.5%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 2.6% 9.0% 2.9%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) 20.3% 12.8% 14.6%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) 3.0% 7.6% 0.9%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) 20.5% 11.6% 14.4%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricSPGINDAQMA
Gross margin 70.9% 63.2% –
EBITDA margin 51.9% 37.0% 68.6%
Operating margin 44.4% 29.8% 58.3%
Pretax margin 42.6% 28.5% 57.5%
Net margin 30.5% 22.8% 46.3%
FCF margin 34.6% 24.7% 47.6%
Operating cash flow margin 35.5% 27.8% 49.7%
Return on equity 16.9% 17.4% 263.6%
Return on assets 8.6% 7.6% 29.5%
Return on invested capital 12.1% 10.5% 59.0%
Return on capital employed 13.6% 12.0% 68.1%
Asset turnover 0.3x 0.3x 0.6x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 1.1x 1.2x 1.1x
Stock comp / revenue 1.5% 1.9% 1.8%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricSPGINDAQMA
Debt / assets 24.1% 31.9% 42.7%
Debt / equity 0.5x 0.7x 4.4x
Net debt / EBITDA 1.3x 2.4x 0.6x
Debt / FCF 2.7x 3.9x 1.5x
Liabilities / assets 49.7% 56.2% 90.3%
Equity / assets 50.3% 43.8% 9.7%
Interest coverage 22.7x 7.9x 27.4x
Current ratio 1.0x 1.0x 1.1x
Quick ratio 0.8x 0.4x 0.7x
Cash ratio 0.5x 0.1x 0.5x
Altman Z-score 3.74 3.44 10.29

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricSPGINDAQMA
Dividend yield 0.9% 1.1% 0.6%
Net buyback yield 3.5% 2.6% 2.9%
Shareholder yield 4.4% 3.7% 3.4%
Payout ratio (earnings) 21.7% – –
Payout ratio (FCF) 20.7% – –
Dividend growth (1Y) 0.4% – –
Dividend CAGR (3Y) 0.8% – –

Analyst Estimates

Solid lines are reported fiscal-year results; dashed lines are the consensus for the years ahead. Hover a year for the analysts' high and low, and how each result compared with its estimate.

ConsensusSPGINDAQMA
Forward P/E 23.9xFY2026 25.6xFY2026 29.7xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $18.87FY2026 $4.01FY2026 $20.99FY2026
EPS growth, next FY +11.9%FY2026 +15.2%FY2026 +23.4%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after +12.9% +10.7% +14.7%
Revenue, next fiscal year $15.46BFY2026 $6.07BFY2026 $38.98BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +0.8%FY2026 +15.7%FY2026 +18.9%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +6.6% +13.2% +0.4%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersSPGINDAQMA
Held by institutions 87.5% 83.8% 88.6%
Institutions holding 2,001 1,082 3,581
Change in shares held, QoQ +1.6% +1.0% +0.6%
Institutions buying 871 538 1,587
Institutions selling 876 397 1,526
Buyers to sellers 0.99 1.36 1.04

Return Correlation

Daily returns, last 12 months

1.00 means two stocks move in lockstep, 0 that they move independently. Pairs below about 0.5 diversify each other.

SPGINDAQMA
SPGI 1.00 0.66 0.42
NDAQ 0.66 1.00 0.41
MA 0.42 0.41 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, SPGI, NDAQ and MA?

Mastercard (MA) is the largest by market capitalisation: S&P Global (SPGI) $132.84B, Nasdaq (NDAQ) $58.54B, Mastercard (MA) $541.87B.

Which stock is cheaper, SPGI, NDAQ and MA?

S&P Global (SPGI) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (S&P Global (SPGI) 27.0x, Nasdaq (NDAQ) 28.1x, Mastercard (MA) 33.3x). On next year's consensus earnings, S&P Global (SPGI) is cheapest (S&P Global (SPGI) 23.9x, Nasdaq (NDAQ) 25.6x, Mastercard (MA) 29.7x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

Mastercard (MA) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: S&P Global (SPGI) +9.7%, Nasdaq (NDAQ) +11.5%, Mastercard (MA) +16.0%.

Which company is more profitable?

Mastercard (MA) has the highest net margin (S&P Global (SPGI) 30.5%, Nasdaq (NDAQ) 22.8%, Mastercard (MA) 46.3%). On return on invested capital, Mastercard (MA) leads (S&P Global (SPGI) 12.1%, Nasdaq (NDAQ) 10.5%, Mastercard (MA) 59.0%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Nasdaq (NDAQ) returned the most: S&P Global (SPGI) -6.7%, Nasdaq (NDAQ) +15.5%, Mastercard (MA) +8.7%. Over five years, Mastercard (MA) compounded fastest (S&P Global (SPGI) 0.0%/yr, Nasdaq (NDAQ) +8.8%/yr, Mastercard (MA) +11.7%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

Only one of these companies pays a dividend: S&P Global (SPGI) 0.01%, Nasdaq (NDAQ) 0.00%, Mastercard (MA) 0.00%. Nasdaq (NDAQ) and Mastercard (MA) pays no regular dividend.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Mastercard (MA) has been the steadiest (S&P Global (SPGI) 30.9%, Nasdaq (NDAQ) 28.4%, Mastercard (MA) 22.6%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, SPGI, NDAQ and MA?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, Mastercard (MA) leads on 7. Business Quant does not give investment advice; use the comparison as a starting point for your own research.

Data from SEC filings, exchange prices and consensus estimates, via Business Quant. Percentile scores compare each company with its own peer group, so two companies' scores are each relative to different peers unless you rank against the whole market. Price returns exclude dividends. Nothing on this page is investment advice.