Investors Don't Groove to MasterCard's Funky Beat By Gary Dvorchak About this article: For Dvorchak's preview heading into the MasterCard conference call, please click here. How often does a company absolutely blow out numbers yet see its stock trade down nearly 5%? It is happening this morning as MasterCard wraps up its earnings conference call, after reporting EPS of $3.48, a massive beat of 54 cents vs. consensus. The disappointment may be in the revenue performance, since sales at $1.36 billion rose only 2% year over year and essentially matched the Street view. The beat was generated completely by excellent cost controls, as operating expenses dropped 13% year over year. Management slipped, however, in admitting that much of the expense gain was due to reallocated marketing budget not getting spent as planned. This explanation seems strained, as no management team would lose control of reported earnings in such a way; it seems more likely that the company held... Or, call us at 1-866-321-TSCM (8726) Monday-Friday, 8 a.m.-6 p.m. ET. Outside the U.S. and in Canada, call 1-212-321-5200.

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