Lombard Odier Asset Management Europe Ltd Reduces Stake in Visa Inc. $V

Lombard Odier Asset Management Europe Ltd lessened its stake in shares of Visa Inc. (NYSE:V) by 45.3% in the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 11,065 shares of the credit-card processor’s stock after selling 9,146 shares during the quarter. Lombard Odier Asset Management Europe Ltd’s holdings in Visa were worth $3,344,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Visa in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $5,877,738,000. Cardano Risk Management B.V. grew its position in shares of Visa by 867.6% during the fourth quarter. Cardano Risk Management B.V. now owns 8,213,610 shares of the credit-card processor’s stock worth $2,880,595,000 after acquiring an additional 7,364,762 shares during the last quarter. Diamant Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Visa by 29,706.3% in the 1st quarter. Diamant Asset Management Inc. now owns 7,332,947 shares of the credit-card processor’s stock valued at $2,216,310,000 after acquiring an additional 7,308,345 shares during the period. J. Stern & Co. LLP increased its holdings in shares of Visa by 12,497.1% in the 4th quarter. J. Stern & Co. LLP now owns 3,378,039 shares of the credit-card processor’s stock valued at $1,184,712,000 after acquiring an additional 3,351,223 shares during the period. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its position in Visa by 48.2% in the 4th quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 6,508,089 shares of the credit-card processor’s stock valued at $2,282,472,000 after purchasing an additional 2,116,463 shares during the last quarter. 82.15% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Visa News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Visa this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Strong earnings continue to support the stock. Visa reported fiscal third-quarter EPS of $3.32, above the $3.23 consensus, while revenue reached $11.63 billion, up 14.4% year over year and ahead of expectations. The results reinforce confidence in payment-volume growth and Visa’s high-margin business model. Visa Trading Up Following Better-Than-Expected Earnings
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts remain constructive. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “Overweight” rating, while BMO Capital Markets, JPMorgan and Robert W. Baird forecast additional price appreciation. One fair-value estimate rose from $398.83 to $411.63, reflecting optimism about payment volumes, value-added services and potential stablecoin-related products. Visa Stock Sees Modest Fair Value Lift
• Positive Sentiment: Restructuring could improve efficiency. Visa plans to eliminate roughly 2,600 jobs, or about 7% of its workforce, as artificial intelligence and other technology reshape operations. Although the cuts may create near-term charges, investors could view lower long-term costs and greater productivity favorably. Visa Layoffs Will Cut 7 Percent of Its Workforce
• Neutral Sentiment: Competitive developments bear watching. X Money launched with a Visa debit card, peer-to-peer transfers and 3% cashback, potentially generating transaction activity for Visa while also intensifying competition in digital payments and consumer wallets. Elon Musk Aims at Venmo With One Bold Perk
• Negative Sentiment: Job cuts may raise execution and sentiment concerns. The scale of the layoffs highlights Visa’s efforts to adapt to AI-driven changes and could unsettle employees or investors if restructuring disrupts growth initiatives. Visa Slashes Thousands of Jobs in Efficiency Push

Visa Stock Performance

NYSE:V opened at $366.33 on Monday. Visa Inc. has a twelve month low of $293.89 and a twelve month high of $373.97. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $341.12 and its 200 day simple moving average is $325.66. The company has a current ratio of 0.99, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. The firm has a market capitalization of $657.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.15, a PEG ratio of 1.98 and a beta of 0.74.

Visa (NYSE:V) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, July 28th. The credit-card processor reported $3.32 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.23 by $0.09. Visa had a return on equity of 67.68% and a net margin of 50.78%.The business had revenue of $11.63 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.40 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.98 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 14.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Visa Inc. will post 13.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Visa announced that its board has initiated a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, April 28th that permits the company to buyback $20.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the credit-card processor to purchase up to 3.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are often an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Visa Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 11th will be given a $0.67 dividend. This represents a $2.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 11th. Visa’s dividend payout ratio is presently 22.79%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Chris Suh sold 10,639 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $324.81, for a total value of $3,455,653.59. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 9,872 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,206,524.32. This represents a 51.87% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Ryan Mcinerney sold 20,970 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $340.25, for a total value of $7,135,042.50. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 15,174 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,162,953.50. This trade represents a 58.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last quarter, insiders sold 101,398 shares of company stock valued at $35,831,433. Corporate insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have commented on V. Citigroup reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $440.00 price objective (up from $400.00) on shares of Visa in a research note on Wednesday. Raymond James Financial reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $406.00 price objective on shares of Visa in a research note on Wednesday. Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on Visa from $412.00 to $420.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $450.00 price target on shares of Visa in a report on Tuesday, June 2nd. Finally, Erste Group Bank upgraded Visa from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 27th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and twenty-four have assigned a Buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $411.77.

Visa Company Profile

Visa Inc is a global payments technology company that facilitates electronic funds transfers and digital commerce by connecting consumers, merchants, financial institutions and governments. The firm operates one of the world’s largest payment networks, providing processing, authorization, clearing and settlement services for credit, debit and prepaid card transactions. Visa’s network-based model enables partner banks and other issuers to offer branded payment products while Visa focuses on the infrastructure, standards and technologies that move money securely and efficiently around the world.

Visa’s product and service portfolio includes card-based payment products for consumers and businesses, real-time push-payment capabilities, tokenization and authentication services, fraud and risk-management tools, data analytics and APIs for fintech and merchant integration.