Visa Inc Beats Earnings Estimates, Announces Stock Split

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As of this writing, shares of Visa were up 3.63% to $257 per share in after-hours trading

Visa released the earnings results from its most recently completed quarter tonight, posting diluted earnings of $2.53 per share, an 11% year over year increase, and basic earnings of $2.54 per share. Revenue rose 7% to $3.4 billion for the quarter. Analysts had been expecting the credit card company to report earnings of $2.49 per share on $3.34 billion in revenue.

Key metrics from Visa’s earnings report

The company recorded an 11% increase in payments volume for the December quarter Payments volume for the period was $1.2 trillion.  Cross border volume growth was 8% for the quarter. Total processed transactions grew 10% to 17.6 billion.

Service revenues rose 8% to $1.5 billion. Revenues from data processing improved 9% to $1.4 billion for the quarter. Revenues from international transactions also increased 9%, climbing to $970 million. Other revenues rose 14% to $204 million. Client incentives were 17.4% of gross revenues or $713 million.

The strengthening of the U.S. dollar had a negative impact of about 2 percentage points on revenue growth.

Visa provides guidance

For the 2015 fiscal year, Visa reaffirmed its previously provided guidance. The credit card company expects net revenue to grow in the low double digits on a constant dollar basis. Visa expects 2 percentage points of negative impacts due to currency headwinds.

The company expects client incentives to be between 17.5% and 18.5% of its gross revenues for the year and its operating margin to be in the mid-60s. Visa expects earnings per share to grow in the mid-teens and its annual free cash flow to be more than $6 billion for the full year.

“Our focus remains squarely on investing in our long-term strategic initiatives, driving new technologies and ways to pay as we continue to work collaboratively with governments, issuers, acquirers, and merchant partners,” said Visa CEO Charles Scharf in a statement.

Visa announces stock split

Visa also announced a four for one stock split tonight. Class A shareholders of record on Feb. 13 will receive three more shares for each share they own as of March 18. Trading starts on the split adjusted basis on March 19.

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