Dumping Libra benefits Visa investors

Article Excerpt

VISA INC., $171, is still a buy. The world’s largest electronic payment processor (New York symbol V; Conservative Growth Portfolio, Finance sector; Shares outstanding: 2.3 billion; Market cap: $393.3 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 17.2; Dividend yield: 0.6%; TSINetwork Rating: Above Average; www.visa.com) has dropped out of Facebook’s plan to launch a new cryptocurrency called Libra. Visa joins other big financial companies that have abandoned the partnership, including MasterCard, PayPal and eBay. That’s because Libra has come under intense scrutiny from governments and central banks that see it as a threat to traditional currencies. As a result, Visa and the others decided the additional regulatory burden offset the potential benefits of the new cryptocurrency. Meantime, the company should continue to benefit as more consumers pay for their goods and services with payment cards instead of cash. cash…