10 Best Stocks to Buy and Hold for 20 Years

4. Visa Inc. (NYSE:V)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 181

Visa Inc. (NYSE:V) operates as a payment technology company. Bryan Bergin, a TD Cowen analyst, is optimistic about the company’s growth prospects. The analyst has lauded the company’s leadership in the consumer payments sector, hinting at the opportunities for further market penetration as well as higher engagement with the help of digital payments. Furthermore, Visa Inc. (NYSE:V)’s expansion into new business flows, as well as its strategic approach to M&As, bolsters the potential for sustainable growth. Over the upcoming 2 decades, the company’s growth is expected to stem from its scale, brand recognition, technology, and network effects. William Blair analyst Andrew Jeffrey is also optimistic about the company’s outlook.

As per the analyst, Visa Inc. (NYSE:V)’s transition from a consumer-payments company to a diversified platform with emphasis on value-added services and new payment flows is regarded as a critical growth enabler for its revenues. This growth is expected to stem from strong internal execution and investments in technology, which can improve its financial performance, mainly in terms of its adjusted EPS growth. Furthermore, Visa Inc. (NYSE:V)’s core payments business tends to benefit from the ongoing shift to electronic payments and technological advancements such as tokens and contactless payments, says the analyst.

Wedgewood Partners, an investment management company, released Q1 2025 investor letter. Here is what the fund said:

“Visa Inc. (NYSE:V) was a top contributor to portfolio performance during the quarter. The Company reported +10% revenue growth and +14% adjusted earnings per share growth, driven by strong cross-border payment volume growth of +16%. The absolute payment transactions and volumes that Visa handles across the globe are staggering: $13.4 trillion in volume on 240 billion transactions during 2024. Despite this massive size, there continues to be large, untapped addressable markets persist, particularly in cash and checks still in use to the tune of, believe it or not, of $11 trillion. At the heart of this activity are traditional banks that issue Visa-branded cards. However, increasingly popular forms of payments such as peer-to-peer, business-to-consumer, and even business-to-business are driving Visa’s volumes beyond traditional consumer payments. There continues to be ample room for Visa to expands its network value proposition and grow at attractive rate years to come.”