What happened
Credit card giant Visa (V 0.65%) had a volatile day on the markets as its shares jumped nearly 3% after the opening bell at about 9:47 a.m. ET today, but then plummeted some 7% midday. At the closing bell, shares climbed back up some to end the day down just 0.95%.
There were multiple catalysts, including its fiscal third-quarter earnings report.
So what
Visa rose in early trading on the strength of its report for the quarter ended June 30, where it beat both earnings and revenue estimates. The company generated $7.3 billion in revenue, a 19% year-over-year increase and more than the $7.1 billion estimated by analysts. Net income was $3.4 billion, up 32% year over year, while adjusted earnings per share was $1.98, which beat estimates of $1.74.
Payment volume was up 12% year over year in the quarter, while cross-border volume was up 40% and processed transactions climbed 16%. Cross-border volume surpassed pre-pandemic 2019 levels, CEO Al Kelly said.
On the earnings call, CFO Vasant Prabhu added that the company is "seeing no evidence of a pullback in consumer spending."
However, a report by The Wall Street Journal early Wednesday afternoon sent Visaʻs stock price tumbling. The article said U.S. Sens. Dick Durbin and Roger Marshall were preparing a bill that would allow merchants to process Visa and Mastercard cards over other networks as a way to increase competition and keep down fees.
Now what
That bill, according to the Journal, could be introduced in the Senate as early as this week, so that is something to keep an eye on. As always, the devil is in the details, so investors will surely want to know what is in it and the impact it could have on Visa.
Also, in a big news day, the Federal Reserve Board concluded its two-day meeting on Wednesday and announced another 75-basis-point interest rate hike to the 2.25% to 2.50% range. The stock market rallied on the announcement, which helped boost Visa back up at the closing bell, ending down only about 0.95% for the day.
The market may have been reacting to Fed Chair Jerome Powellʻs comments today that he did not think the country was in recession and that the Fed could slow the pace of rate hikes as it assesses their impact on spending, wages, unemployment, and other indicators.
As for Visa, the surge in cross-border volume signals that travel spending is back, and the comment that there is no evidence of a slowdown in spending is good news heading into its Q4.
