According to a report by Reuters on Thursday, Visa Inc (V) plans to acquire Earthport Plc, a British company that services international transactions for banks and business organizations, for as much as GBP 198 million (or $250.29 million).
Visa Incs unit, Visa International Service Association, has proposed 30 pence per Earthport share, the same media reported.
Visa shares closed higher for a second consecutive trading session in New York on Thursday. The stock went up 1.37% ($1.78) to close at $132.01. The latter was also an intraday high and a price level not seen since December 20th.
Shares of Visa Inc have risen 15.78% so far in 2018 compared with a 6.91% drop for the benchmark index, S&P 500 (SPX).
In 2017, Visa Inc’s stock gained 46.14%, thus, it again outperformed the S&P 500, which registered a 19.42% return.
According to London-based Earthport Plc, Visa’s all-cash offer is “fair and reasonable” and Earthport shareholders should take up the proposal.
Banks and money transfer companies, which use Earthport Plcs lower-cost alternative to traditional payments systems, are allowed to maintain a single relationship instead of a variety of relationships with payments channels across the globe, the British firm points out.
In October, Visa Inc said that the volume of cross-border payments, or transactions between parties located in two or more countries, had increased 10% during its fiscal year 2018.
Goldman Sachs advised Visa on the above-mentioned deal and Rothschild & Co advised Earthport.
According to CNN Money, the 36 analysts, offering 12-month forecasts regarding Visa Inc’s stock price, have a median target of $165.00, with a high estimate of $196.00 and a low estimate of $144.00. The median estimate represents a 24.99% upside compared to the closing price of $132.01 on December 27th.
The same media also reported that 31 out of 40 surveyed investment analysts had rated Visa Inc’s stock as “Buy”, while 3 – as “Hold”.
Weekly Pivot Levels
By using the traditional method of calculation, the weekly levels of importance for Visa Inc (V) are presented as follows:
Central Pivot Point – $127.69
R1 – $132.44
R2 – $140.61
R3 – $145.36
R4 – $150.10
S1 – $119.52
S2 – $114.77
S3 – $106.60
S4 – $98.42
TradingPedia.com is a financial media specialized in providing daily news and education covering Forex, equities and commodities. Our academies for traders cover 
