Visa (V) Provides Fitbit Pay Service, Expands In IoT Space

Global payments company Visa Inc. (NYSE:V) has made available a payment service on Fitbit Ionic, Fitbit’s first smartwatch. The service named Fitbit Pay will be provided by Visa’s eligible cardholders of participating banks.

This payment service will cater to the demand of most wearable owners, who wish to use these devices to make payments for their purchases.

Visa will provide its token service for Fitbit Pay. Visa token service is a technology that provides an additional layer of security to the whole process of payment mechanism by replacing the credentials of card holders with a unique digital token. The code or the token hides personal information of cardholders thus reducing chances of cyber theft.

The payments’ space is fast changing due to increased proliferation of technology which is substituting the use of physical wallet. This service marks another step in the progress toward a cashless future and growth of Internet of Things (IoT).

Visa sees huge growth opportunity in the expanding IoT space. Notably, IoT has taken the payment process to the next level where payments can be made via a broad and diverse ecosystem of Internet-connected devices, such as wearables, connected cars, and smart home devices from the current focus on mobile phones, cards, and point-of-sale devices.

The need of the hour is seamless payments through a number of touchpoints. Visa seeks to increase its IoT partnerships by which it can grow its business volume and strengthen its brand name. It is estimated that more than 20.4 billion devices will be connected to the Internet by 2020.

Visa has been on the forefront with respect to technological investments and enhancements. It is a leader in its market and investors have immense confidence in the company given its robust operating fundamentals and prospects.

In a year, the stock has gained 30.1% compared with the growth of 26% for the industry it belongs to.

Zacks Rank and Stocks to Consider

Visa carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). Some better-ranked players in the same space are Green Dot Corp. (NYSE:GDOT) , Vantiv, Inc. (NYSE:V) and Western Union Co. (NYSE:WU) . While Green Dot sports a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), the other two carry a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

Green Dot has been witnessing upward estimate revisions for the last 30 days. In a year’s time, the company’s share price has risen more than 99%.

Vantiv has been witnessing upward estimate revisions for the last 30 days. Further, the stock has surged nearly 35.1% in the last 12 months.

Western Union has recorded upward estimate revisions for the last 30 days. It beat estimates in two of the last four quarters, with an average positive surprise of 4%.

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