Visa Inc (NYSE:V) stock is 3.2% higher to trade at $335.98 at last glance, following an upgrade to "buy" from "neutral" at BofA Global Research. The analyst noted the company's "very attractive return potential," Stablecoin prospects, as well as "manageable" regulatory and litigation risks.
The brokerage bunch already leaned bullish toward V coming into today, with 29 of the 36 firms in coverage calling it a "buy" or better. Plus, the 12-month consensus target price of $397.29 is an 18.6% premium to current levels.
Visa stock is today looking to snap a three-day losing streak with its biggest single-day percentage gain since April 22. Shares have been drifting lower since a June 11 all-time high of $375.51, ushered lower by a slew of moving averages. For 2025, V maintains a slim 6% lead.
Options bulls are targeting the equity today, with 4,386 calls exchanged so far -- double the volume typically seen at this point -- compared to 1,527 puts. The most popular contract is the weekly 12/26 330-strike call, followed closely by the January 16, 2026 350-strike call.
Now looks like an excellent time to weigh in on the stock's next moves with options, as its Schaeffer's Volatility Index (SVI) of 20% sits higher than just 11% of readings from the last year. In other words, options are affordably priced at the moment. And with a Schaeffer's Volatility Scorecard (SVS) of 6 out of 100, the security has consistently realized lower volatility than its options have priced in, so a premium-selling strategy could be the move for options traders.
