Tom Gayner’s Markel Gayner Asset Management Portfolio: Top 5 Finance Stocks

2. Visa Inc. (NYSE:V)

Markel Gayner Asset Management’s Stake Value: $213,404,000

Percentage of Markel Gayner Asset Management’s 13F Portfolio: 2.69%

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 162

Visa Inc. (NYSE:V) is a California-based financial services mega company that facilitates digital transfer of funds via credit, debit, and prepaid cards. Visa Inc. (NYSE:V)’s cards are available worldwide, and it is one of the most valuable global companies. Visa Inc. (NYSE:V) is also a top finance stock in the investment portfolio of Markel Gayner Asset Management as of June this year, with the investment firm owning 958,040 shares in Visa Inc. (NYSE:V), worth $213.4 million. This stock accounts for 2.69% of the firm’s Q2 portfolio. 

On October 26, Visa Inc. (NYSE:V) posted Q3 earnings. The EPS came in at $1.62, beating estimates by $0.08. Visa Inc. (NYSE:V)’s revenue for the third quarter totaled $6.56 billion, exceeding estimated revenue by $45.89 million. 

Mizuho analyst Dan Dolev, on November 1, lowered the price target of Visa Inc. (NYSE:V) from $275 to $255, and kept a Buy rating on the shares. 

As of the second quarter of 2021, 162 hedge funds monitored by Insider Monkey were reportedly bullish on Visa Inc. (NYSE:V), compared to 164 in the preceding quarter. 

Here is what Polen Capital has to say about Visa Inc. (NYSE:V) in its Q3 2021 investor letter:

“Visa Inc. faced pressure as some believe these “old payment infrastructure” businesses will be disrupted by newer fintech companies using blockchain, buy now, pay later (BNPL), or other innovations to provide better/cheaper payment services. However, we believe that some of these technologies have meaningful limitations which could benefit existing payment networks. For example, BNPL transactions are often funded with cards and turn a one-time transaction into many smaller ones with more transaction fees for Visa. Just like with regulation, we continually monitor for competition and technological disruption. As of now, we do not see a significant risk in the foreseeable future to this company.”