V is down almost 4% since earnings last week, leading to a nice gain on my Mar 160/150/140 put fly. I’ve debated leaving the position on with the stock down here, but my original plan on this trade was to take it off when V got down to near the 50 day moving average, so that’s what I’m going to do. V’s weakness despite a strong market indicates a stock poised for further selling down the line, but I’d rather take the gain now, and potentially revisit in the future than stay with a trade that has me risking $3.70 of premium here.
ACTION: Sold to Close V ($154.62) Mar 160/150/140 Put Fly at $3.75 for $1.60 gain
Original Trade Feb 6th, 2013:
In my preview below, I discussed the bull/bear arguments for Visa. But what’s the trade?
I think the bull thesis is well known, but the valuation has now become extended. I don’t want to stick my neck out just for an earnings trade because I don’t expect much new information from the earnings call. Rather, I’d prefer to put on a trade in March that gives me time to play for a pullback, as investors rotate out of the name and look for better value elsewhere. Like I said in the preview, given Visa’s consistency, I don’t see a huge selloff in the works, so here’s my trade:
TRADE: Bought the V ($160.00) Mar 160/150/140 Put Fly for $2.15
-Bought 1 Mar 160 put for 4.55
-Sold 2 Mar 150 puts at 1.51
-Bought 1 Mar 140 put for 0.63
Break-Even on Mar Expiration:
-Profits between 157.85 and 142.15, max profit of 7.85 at 150 in the stock
-Losses of up to 2.15 between 157.85 and 160, and between 142.15 and 140, max loss of 2.15 at or below 140 and above 160
Earnings Preview:
Event: V reports fiscal Q1 earnings after the close tonight. The options market is implying about a 2.5% move vs the 4 qtr avg of about 4%, and the 8 quarter avg of about 2.75%.
Price Action / Sentiment: V has been a huge winner, up 60% in the past year, moving its market cap from around 70 billion to around 110 billion today.
The street remains positive on the name with 28 Buys, 10 Holds and 1 Sell, but only an avg 12 month price target of ~$167.
Options open interest is evenly split between calls and puts, while volumes in the past month have been skewed 1.4 to 1 towards calls.
Technicals: V stock has been in an incredibly steady uptrend, especially given its size. The 2 year chart shows a stock that has only traded under its 50 day moving average (in pink) for a few months, and hasn’t even come close to touching its 200 day moving average (in black) since August 2011:
Based on Mastercard’s price action after a strong earnings report last week (the stock opened at all-time highs, only to fall right back into its trading range), I think the appetite for new buyers in the payment processors is close to exhausted in the short-term. The 50 day ma around 154 should be initial support, and the 2013 closing level of 151.58 is another important level on the downside. The stock’s all-time high of 162.77 is the only level of resistance.
Fundamentals / Valuation: The bullish drivers for the stock have been:
- Secular shift to electronic payments. That’s been an important driver of 15% sales growth and 25% earnings growth over the last couple years. Sales growth is projected to be 11% over the next 2 years, coupled with earnings growth of around 15%.
- International adoption of card payments. Visa has historically had a revenue split of 60% U.S., and 40% international. Over time the international growth is expected to be the driver as adoption of alternate payments spreads.
- New payment technologies. As mobile payments systems expand (an area of focus for both GOOG and AAPL), new transaction processing revenue opportunities open up for V.
These positives are all well and good, but what are investors paying for the good news here? Herein lies the problem with the bullish thesis. The lifetime chart of the Visa P/E multiple:
Visa’s multiple is near all-time highs, at a time when sales and earnings growth are expected to be lower than they have been over the past 3 years. Also, at this point, Visa is a $100 billion market cap company, and size alone usually implies a lower multiple given the difficulty of growing earnings as size increases.
I agree with all of the secular trends in Visa’s favor. I think the company has bright future prospects. But the stock here is no bargain, and a low 20’s multiple is likely fair value given growth prospects
Vol Snapshot: Realized volatility (in blue) has been low in Visa so far in 2013. So it’s no surprise that implied volatility (in red) at its lowest level heading into an earnings event over the last year:
All things considered, volatility pricing looks fair.
My View: I was one of the largest market makers in Visa options from 2008 to 2012, and am keenly familiar with this stock’s machinations. It’s been a consistent performer on earnings, rarely pulling any surprises, and the stock’s uptrend has reflected that. However, the stock’s current valuation seems more than full to me here. I don’t expect any pullback to be extreme given the predictability of Visa’s future revenue and earnings streams, but I do think a short-term move back to the 150-155 area is possible. With that in mind, I am likely to do a trade later today.