Girard Partners LTD. boosted its stake in shares of Visa Inc. (NYSE:V) by 13.2% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 88,578 shares of the credit-card processor’s stock after buying an additional 10,301 shares during the period. Visa accounts for about 1.9% of Girard Partners LTD.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 7th largest position. Girard Partners LTD.’s holdings in Visa were worth $7,872,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.
Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Mercer Capital Advisers Inc. raised its position in Visa by 2.2% in the first quarter. Mercer Capital Advisers Inc. now owns 1,167 shares of the credit-card processor’s stock worth $104,000 after buying an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. Delta Asset Management LLC TN raised its position in Visa by 2.5% in the first quarter. Delta Asset Management LLC TN now owns 1,541 shares of the credit-card processor’s stock worth $137,000 after buying an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. Pacific Center for Financial Services bought a new position in Visa during the fourth quarter worth approximately $138,000. State of Alaska Department of Revenue bought a new position in Visa during the first quarter worth approximately $153,000. Finally, SRS Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new position in Visa during the fourth quarter worth approximately $160,000. Institutional investors own 82.02% of the company’s stock.
Shares of Visa Inc. (V) opened at 100.89 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $96.32 and its 200 day moving average is $91.20. Visa Inc. has a 12 month low of $75.17 and a 12 month high of $101.34. The firm has a market capitalization of $230.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.52 and a beta of 0.94.
Visa (NYSE:V) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 20th. The credit-card processor reported $0.86 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the Zacks’ consensus estimate of $0.81 by $0.05. Visa had a return on equity of 30.95% and a net margin of 36.53%. The business had revenue of $4.57 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.36 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.69 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 25.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that Visa Inc. will post $3.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
Visa announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback plan on Thursday, April 20th that authorizes the company to buyback $5.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the credit-card processor to purchase up to 2.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.
The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 5th. Investors of record on Friday, August 18th will be paid a $0.165 dividend. This represents a $0.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.65%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, August 16th. Visa’s dividend payout ratio is currently 24.54%.
V has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Citigroup Inc. reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $100.00 price objective on shares of Visa in a research note on Thursday, May 25th. Vetr upgraded shares of Visa from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $95.32 target price for the company in a report on Thursday, April 27th. Deutsche Bank AG raised their target price on shares of Visa from $124.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, July 10th. Nomura raised their target price on shares of Visa from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 21st. Finally, Credit Suisse Group set a $112.00 target price on shares of Visa and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, July 22nd. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-seven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Visa has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $104.56.
In related news, EVP Tullier Kelly Mahon sold 29,772 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $100.91, for a total value of $3,004,292.52. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 17,360 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,751,797.60. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.14% of the company’s stock.
About Visa
Visa Inc (Visa) is a payments technology company that connects consumers, merchants, financial institutions, businesses, strategic partners and government entities to electronic payments. The Company operates through payment services segment. The Company enables global commerce through the transfer of value and information among the participants.
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