Reviewing Mastercard (NYSE:MA) and ZipLink (OTCMKTS:ZIPL)

ZipLink (OTCMKTS:ZIPL) and Mastercard (NYSE:MA) are both computer and technology companies, but which is the superior stock? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their profitability, institutional ownership, risk, valuation, analyst recommendations, dividends and earnings.

Volatility and Risk

ZipLink has a beta of 34.19, indicating that its stock price is 3,319% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Mastercard has a beta of 1.1, indicating that its stock price is 10% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

97.3% of Mastercard shares are owned by institutional investors. 57.5% of ZipLink shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 0.1% of Mastercard shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of recent ratings and price targets for ZipLink and Mastercard, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
ZipLink	0	0	0	0	N/A
Mastercard	0	4	20	3	2.96

Mastercard has a consensus price target of $540.17, suggesting a potential upside of 6.85%.

Profitability

This table compares ZipLink and Mastercard’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
ZipLink	N/A	N/A	N/A
Mastercard	45.26%	178.27%	29.81%

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares ZipLink and Mastercard”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
ZipLink	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
Mastercard	$25.10 billion	18.61	$11.20 billion	$13.22	38.24

Mastercard has higher revenue and earnings than ZipLink.

Summary

Mastercard beats ZipLink on 7 of the 9 factors compared between the two stocks.

About ZipLink

This record represents the public shell of ZipLink, Inc. In November 2000, ZipLink, Inc. suspended its operations and announced the lay off of substantially all of its employees except those necessary to wind down operations. Ziplink, Inc. operated as a wholesale connectivity provider in North America for the Business-to-Business marketplace, including Internet service providers, competitive local exchange carriers, Web appliance vendors, and PC manufacturers and distributors, as of September 30, 2000. ZipLink also offered a range of Internet connectivity services for Internet appliances, including Internet access and subscriber authentication. The company was founded in 1995 and is based in Lowell, Massachusetts.

About Mastercard

Mastercard Incorporated, a technology company, provides transaction processing and other payment-related products and services in the United States and internationally. The company offers integrated products and value-added services for account holders, merchants, financial institutions, digital partners, businesses, governments, and other organizations, such as programs that enable issuers to provide consumers with credits to defer payments; payment products and solutions that allow its customers to access funds in deposit and other accounts; prepaid programs services; and commercial credit, debit, and prepaid payment products and solutions. It also provides solutions that enable businesses or governments to make payments to businesses, including Virtual Card Number, which is generated dynamically from a physical card and leverages the credit limit of the funding account; a platform to optimize supplier payment enablement campaigns for financial institutions; and treasury intelligence platform that offers corporations with recommendations to enhance working capital performance and accelerate spend on cards. In addition, the company offers Mastercard Send, which partners with digital messaging and payment platforms to enable consumers to send money directly within applications to other consumers; and Mastercard Cross-Border Services enables a range of payment flows through a distribution network with a single point of access to send and receive money globally through various channels, including bank accounts, mobile wallets, cards, and cash payouts. Further, it provides cyber and intelligence solutions; insights and analytics, consulting, marketing, loyalty, processing, and payment gateway solutions for e-commerce merchants; and open banking and digital identity services. The company offers payment solutions and services under the MasterCard, Maestro, and Cirrus name. Mastercard Incorporated was founded in 1966 and is headquartered in Purchase, New York.