Visa Ranked as One of the Best Stocks to Buy in 2026
Written by Emily J. Thompson, Senior Investment Analyst
Updated: Apr 20 2026
0mins
Should l Buy V?
Source: NASDAQ.COM
- Investment Recommendation: Analysts have ranked Visa as one of the best stocks to buy in 2026, although the Motley Fool's Stock Advisor team has excluded Visa from its current top ten stock picks, indicating a divergence in market sentiment regarding Visa's future performance.
- Historical Returns Comparison: The Motley Fool's Stock Advisor boasts an average return of 994% since inception, significantly outperforming the S&P 500's 199%, highlighting the potential profitability of its recommended stocks, prompting investors to carefully assess Visa's investment value.
- Market Performance: As of April 20, 2026, Visa's stock price is under scrutiny, with analysts suggesting that other ten recommended stocks may yield higher returns in the coming years, urging investors to consider a diversified investment strategy.
- Investor Community: The Motley Fool encourages investors to join its community for the latest investment advice and stock recommendations, emphasizing the importance of collective wisdom in investment decision-making.
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Analyst Views on V
Wall Street analysts forecast V stock price to rise
25 Analyst Rating
23 Buy
2 Hold
0 Sell
Strong Buy
Current: 322.520
Low
330.00
Averages
406.59
High
450.00
Current: 322.520
Low
330.00
Averages
406.59
High
450.00
About V
Visa Inc. is a global payments technology company. It facilitates global commerce and money movement across more than 200 countries and territories among a global set of consumers, merchants, financial institutions and government entities through technologies. It operates through the Payment Services segment. It provides transaction processing services (primarily authorization, clearing and settlement) to its financial institution and merchant clients through VisaNet, its proprietary advanced transaction processing network. It offers a range of Visa-branded payment products that its clients, including nearly 14,500 financial institutions, use to develop and offer payment solutions or services, including credit, debit, prepaid and cash access programs for individual, business and government account holders. It also provides value-added services to its clients, including issuing solutions, acceptance solutions, risk and identity solutions, open banking solutions and advisory services.
About the author
Emily J. Thompson
Emily J. Thompson, a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) with 12 years in investment research, graduated with honors from the Wharton School. Specializing in industrial and technology stocks, she provides in-depth analysis for Intellectia’s earnings and market brief reports.
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- Alphabet's Rise: Abel promoted AI giant Alphabet to a top-five position in Berkshire's portfolio, acquiring 36.4 million Class A shares valued at approximately $23 billion, indicating the company's increasing focus on tech stocks and optimism about future growth potential.
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- Transaction Fees and Supply Reduction: The XRP Ledger charges a minimum transaction fee of 0.00001 XRP, with an average fee of 0.005 XRP during normal network load; since its launch in 2012, only 14.3 million XRP have been destroyed, representing about 0.02% of the current circulating supply, indicating minimal impact on supply reduction.
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- Transaction Volume and Price Impact: To burn 1% of the supply in a single year, XRPL would need to process about 130 billion transactions, or 350 million per day, which is about 40% of Visa's daily transaction volume; even with significant scaling, this remains insufficient to drive returns for holders.
- Role of Narrative Catalysts: While the mathematical model for supply reduction does not support price increases, Ripple's announcements have historically driven XRP prices up, prompting investors to reassess their rationale for holding XRP and avoid misunderstanding the network's growth impact on supply.
See More
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- Stable Apple Holdings: Berkshire maintained its stake in Apple at approximately 228 million shares, which, while below the historical peak of over 900 million shares, still represents 22% of its equity portfolio, reflecting confidence in Apple's long-term value.
- Significant Google Investment: Berkshire's share count in Alphabet surged from about 17.85 million to roughly 58 million, pushing the position's value to nearly $17 billion, indicating CEO Abel's strong confidence and willingness to invest in tech stocks.
- Exploration of New Investment Areas: The new $2.65 billion stake in Delta Air Lines and a minor position in Macy's signal Abel's readiness to enter sectors previously avoided by Buffett, further diversifying the investment portfolio.
- Aggressive Sell-offs: Berkshire exited positions in Amazon, Visa, Mastercard, and others, while slashing its stake in Constellation Brands by 95%, indicating Abel's intent to reshape the investment strategy and reinforce his personal style.
See More
Investment Opportunities in the Financial Sector
- Visa's Growth Potential: Visa processed 71 billion transactions in 2015, a 9% year-over-year increase, and is projected to handle 257.5 billion transactions by 2025, reflecting a 10% annual growth rate, indicating sustained business expansion, although its current price-to-earnings and price-to-sales ratios are below five-year averages, suggesting reasonable valuation.
- Federal Realty's Stability: With a 3.9% dividend yield, Federal Realty is recognized as a Dividend King, having increased its dividend for over fifty years, focusing on quality asset management that ensures higher population densities and income levels in its portfolio, making it a highly reliable investment despite slower growth.
- AGNC Investment Risks: While AGNC Investment boasts a dividend yield exceeding 13%, its dividend has been volatile and has declined for over a decade, and although its total return is comparable to the S&P 500 index, investors should exercise caution as its dividends are not reliable.
- Diverse Investment Options: Within the financial sector, Visa and Federal Realty present reliable dividend growth stocks, while AGNC Investment offers high yields but requires careful consideration, prompting investors to choose based on their risk tolerance.
See More
Berkshire Hathaway's Major Portfolio Overhaul Under Greg Abel
- Portfolio Restructuring: Under Greg Abel's leadership, Berkshire Hathaway's equity portfolio underwent significant changes in the first three months, adding Delta Air Lines and Macy's, indicating a renewed focus on the airline and retail sectors.
- Massive Alphabet Stake Increase: Berkshire increased its stake in Google's parent company Alphabet by 224% in Q1, making it the company's seventh-largest holding with a market value of $16.6 billion, and the stock has rallied 38% since, showcasing the success of this decision.
- Reduction in Holdings: Abel dramatically cut the number of companies in the portfolio, selling off major stakes including Amazon and Visa, with Amazon's shares reduced from 10 million to 2.3 million, reflecting a significant strategic shift in investment focus.
- Return to Delta Airlines: Berkshire purchased 39.8 million shares of Delta Air Lines in Q1, currently valued at $2.8 billion, marking the company's first return to airline stocks since 2020, demonstrating confidence in the recovery of the airline industry.
See More
