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MasterCard Incorporated (NYSE: MA) shares rose marginally after CNBC's Jim Cramer recommended the stock on his Mad Money program. The hedge fund manager turned television star noted the credit card company's terrific quarter and recommended that shareholders buy the stock on the way down as consumers switch from paper to plastic for their purchases.

MasterCard has fared much better than competitors like Discover Financial Services (NYSE: DFS) because it is solely a credit card processing company and is not responsible for any bad debt - that burden is put squarely on the issuing banks. Instead, the company gets paid through fees from the banks issuing its cards and a percentage of each transaction when merchants accept them. Essentially, MasterCard acts as a gatekeeper - or middleman - through the entire process.

Shares of MasterCard Incorporated rose $0.84, or 0.59%, to $142.34 per share in mid-day trading.

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