Visa (V.US) Q4 revenue increased 13% year over year to US$12.1 billion, cross-border payment transactions increased 14%

The Zhitong Finance App learned that Visa (V.US) announced financial results for the fourth quarter and full year of the 2026 fiscal year on Tuesday. According to the data, the company's net revenue for the fourth fiscal quarter was US$12.139 billion, up 13% year on year; GAAP net profit was US$6.02 billion, up 18% year on year; and diluted earnings per share were US$3.19, up 22% year on year. Non-GAAP adjusted net profit was $6.552 billion, up 13% year over year, and adjusted earnings per share were $3.48, up 17% year over year.

In terms of profitability, Visa's operating profit for the fourth fiscal quarter reached US$7.262 billion, up about 18% year over year; operating margin was about 59.8%, up from 57.3% in the same period last year. GAAP operating expenses for the quarter were US$4.887 billion, up 7% year over year, mainly driven by increases in general and administrative expenses. Non-GAAP adjusted operating expenses increased 12% year over year, mainly reflecting increases in marketing and personnel expenses.

Visa said that revenue growth in the fourth fiscal quarter was mainly due to continued increases in payment transaction volume, cross-border payment transaction volume, and number of transactions processed. Specifically, Visa's fourth fiscal quarter payment transaction volume increased 9% year over year based on a fixed exchange rate; excluding intra-European transactions, cross-border payment transaction volume increased 14% year over year, and overall cross-border payment transaction volume also increased 14%. The number of transactions processed by the company during the quarter reached 74.2 billion, an increase of 10% over the previous year.

By business, Visa's fourth fiscal quarter service revenue was US$5.255 billion, up 14% year on year; data processing revenue was US$6.245 billion, up 16% year on year; international transaction revenue was US$4.115 billion, up 8% year on year; and other revenue was US$1,647 billion, up 40% year on year. Meanwhile, customer incentive spending increased 21% year over year to US$5.123 billion.

Notably, in the fourth fiscal quarter, Visa confirmed approximately $469 million in litigation provisions relating to bank card exchange fees and donated $282 million worth of investment assets to the Visa Foundation. These projects had a certain impact on GAAP profits for the quarter.

Looking at full-year performance, Visa achieved net revenue of US$45.903 billion in fiscal year 2026, an increase of 15% year over year, and an increase of 14% at a fixed exchange rate, a record high. GAAP net profit for the year was $23.504 billion, up 17% year over year; diluted earnings per share were $12.32, up 21% year over year. Non-GAAP adjusted net profit was $25.314 billion, up 12% year over year, and adjusted earnings per share were $13.27, up 16% year over year.

In terms of business indicators, Visa's annual payment transaction volume increased by 9% based on a fixed exchange rate. Excluding intra-European transactions, cross-border payment transaction volume increased by 12%, and overall cross-border payment transaction volume increased 13%. The number of transactions processed throughout the year reached 281.3 billion, an increase of 9% over the previous year.

Visa CEO Ryan McInerney said the 2026 fiscal year was a landmark year for the company. The company's annual revenue reached a record level of approximately US$46 billion, an increase of 15% over the previous year. Excluding post-COVID-19 recovery and the impact of acquisitions, this is Visa's strongest annual revenue growth in more than 15 years.

In terms of shareholder returns, Visa returned 5.2 billion US dollars to shareholders through share repurchases and dividends in the fourth fiscal quarter, with a total return of 25.6 billion US dollars for the whole year. Among them, the company spent 4 billion US dollars to repurchase about 11 million Class A common shares in the fourth fiscal quarter, and the annual share repurchase scale reached 20.5 billion US dollars. By the end of September, Visa's remaining share repurchase authorization amount was US$24.4 billion.

Additionally, Visa's board of directors announced a 16% increase in the quarterly cash dividend to $0.78 per share, and the new dividend will be paid to shareholders registered as of November 10 on December 1.

In terms of mergers and acquisitions, Visa previously announced the acquisition of fraud risk intelligence company BioCatch for 2.4 billion US dollars in cash. The transaction is expected to be completed by the end of the second quarter of fiscal year 2027, and customary delivery conditions such as regulatory approval are still required.

As of September 30, 2026, Visa held approximately US$14.2 billion in cash, cash equivalents and investment securities.

Looking ahead, McInerney said that as technology continues to change commercial transactions, Visa will continue to rely on its global payment network, technology and product advantages to seize development opportunities in the payment industry, and regard trust as an important factor driving the company's growth in 2027 and beyond.