Shares of Visa (V) are up 2% after the credit card giant announced better-than-expected financial results for this year’s third quarter.
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Visa reported earnings per share (EPS) of $2.71, which topped the consensus forecast of $2.58. The company’s Q3 revenue of $9.62 billion beat consensus expectations that called for sales of $9.49 billion. Sales were up 12% from a year earlier.
Breaking down its results, Visa said that its payments volume during Q3 grew 8% year-over-year, besting forecasts of 6.8%. Management also attributed the strong results to growth in cross-border or international payment volumes, as well as processed transactions.
Raising Visa’s Dividend Payment
The latest print from Visa comes as the company deals with an antitrust lawsuit filed by the U.S. Department of Justice in September of this year. The Justice Department has accused Visa of illegally operating a monopoly in the debit card market and unfairly suppressing competition. The company has vowed to fight the lawsuit.
Along with the latest financial results, Visa announced that it is raising its quarterly dividend payment to stockholders by 13% to $0.59 per share. In terms of its share price, V stock is currently trading near its all-time high of $293.07, having risen 9% year-to-date.
Is V Stock a Buy?
Visa stock has a consensus Strong Buy rating among 28 Wall Street analysts. That rating is based on 23 Buy and five Hold recommendations made in the last three months. There are no Sell ratings on the stock. The average V price target of $314.09 implies 11.43% upside from current levels.
