The War on Cash and Some Ways to Play it

I've been somewhat surprised at the relatively low level of resistance to the proclivity of governments and the banking system to move rapidly toward a cashless society.

When looking through comment sections of blogs and news sites, one of the major responses to the concerns is people from the U.S. will allude to the words on our currency that says it's a "legal tender," as if that will stop the forward motion of what has become a global initiative in many nations.

Immediately below is a list of the reasons I have been able to find as to why we should move towards a cashless society. They are from a variety of nations, and not all are given as reasons from any one country.
Stated reasons:

    Fight terrorism

    Tax evasion

    Black market

    Costs of currency production

    Improve credit rating of country (Uruguay)

    Encourages underground economy

    Money laundering

    Reductions in armed robbery

    Counterfeiting


read more ...

Visa (V) Ratings, Price Targets

Visa Inc. (NYSE: V) had ratings and price targets on it adjusted by analysts.

Visa Inc. (V) had its price target raised by Meredith Whitney from $105.00 to $117.00. They have an “Outperform” rating on the stock.

Visa Inc. had its price target raised by Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS) from $114.00 to $125.00. They have a “Buy” rating on the stock.

Visa Inc. had its price target raised by Morgan Keegan from $120.00 to $125.00. They have an “Outperform” rating on the stock.

Visa Inc. had its price target raised by Oppenheimer from $110.00 to $126.00. They have an “Outperform” rating on the stock.

Visa Inc. had its price target raised by FBR Capital from $96.00 to $120.00. They have a “Market Perform” rating on the stock.

Visa Inc. had its price target raised by Wedbush from $83.00 to $90.00. They have a “Neutral” rating on the stock.

Visa Inc. had its price target raised by Deutsche Bank (NYSE:DB) from $107.00 to $125.00. They have a “Buy” rating on the stock.

Visa Inc. had its price target raised by Citigroup (NYSE:C) from $104.00 to $115.00. They have a “Neutral” rating on the stock.

Visa (V) (WOR) (ZUMZ) (ACN) (ACTG) (ANN) Price Targets Changed

Visa Inc. (NYSE: V), Worthington (NYSE: WOR), Zumiez (NASDAQ: ZUMZ), Accenture Plc (NYSE: ACN), Acacia Research Co. (NASDAQ: ACTG) and AnnTaylor Stores Corp. (NYSE: ANN) had price targets on them adjusted by analysts.

Visa Inc. (V) had its price target raised by Barclays Capital (NYSE:BCS) from $100.00 to $120.00. They have an “Overweight” rating on the company.

Worthington (WOR) had its price target raised by Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS) to $14.50. They have a “Sell” rating on the company.

Zumiez (ZUMZ) had its price target raised by Barclays Capital from $22.00 to $29.00. They have an “Equal Weight” rating on the company.

Accenture Plc (ACN) had its price target lowered by Barclays Capital from $58.00 to $56.00. They have an “Equal Weight” rating on the company.

Acacia Research Co. (ACTG) had its price target lowered by Barclays Capital from $45.00 to $41.00. They have an “Equal Weight” rating on the company.

AnnTaylor Stores Corp. (ANN) had its price target lowered by Barclays Capital from $36.00 to $33.00. They have an “Overweight” rating on the company.

NetApp (NTAP) (VMED) (DNKN) (XLS) (STLD) (V) Ratings, Price Targets

NetApp Inc. (NASDAQ: NTAP), Virgin Media (NASDAQ: VMED), Dunkin Brands (NASDAQ: DNKN), Exelis Inc. (NYSE: XLS), Steel Dynamics, Inc. (NASDAQ: STLD) and Visa Inc. (NYSE: V) ratings and price targets.

Virgin Media (VMED) was downgraded by RBS from a “Buy” rating to a “Hold” rating.

Dunkin Brands (DNKN) was upgraded by Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS) from a “Sell” rating to a “Neutral” rating.

Exelis Inc. (XLS) was upgraded by JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM) from a “Neutral” rating to an “Overweight” rating.

Steel Dynamics, Inc. (STLD) was upgraded by Bank of America (NYSE:BAC) from a “Neutral” rating to a “Buy” rating.

Visa Inc. (V) was downgraded by Janney Montgomery Scott from a “Buy” rating to a “Neutral” rating.

NetApp Inc. (NTAP) was downgraded by Credit Suisse (NYSE:CS) from an “Outperform” rating to a “Neutral” rating.

Visa (V) (VHS) (VMED) (KWK) (LMNX) (LMT) Downgraded

Visa Inc. (NYSE: V), Vanguard Health (NYSE: VHS), Virgin Media (NASDAQ: VMED), Quicksilver Resources Inc. (NYSE: KWK), Luminex (NASDAQ: LMNX) and Lockheed Martin Co. (NYSE: LMT) were downgraded by analysts.

Visa Inc. (V) was downgraded by Janney Montgomery Scott from a “Buy” rating to a “Neutral” rating.

Vanguard Health (VHS) was downgraded by Citigroup (NYSE:C) from a “Buy” rating to a “Neutral” rating.

Virgin Media (VMED) was downgraded by RBS from a “Buy” rating to a “Hold” rating.

Quicksilver Resources Inc. (KWK) was downgraded by Raymond James (NYSE:RJF) from a “Market Perform” rating to an “Underperform” rating.

Luminex (LMNX) was downgraded by JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM) from a “Neutral” rating to an “Underweight” rating.

Lockheed Martin Co. (LMT) was downgraded by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from an “Overweight” rating to a “Neutral” rating.

Visa (V) Price Target Raised by Goldman (GS)

Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS) raised its price target on Visa (NYSE:V) to $114.00. They have a "Buy" rating on the firm.

Visa recently had other ratings action as well, with FBR Capital (NASDAQ:FBCM) downgrading the stock from an "Outperform" rating to a "Market Perform" rating. They have a price target of $96.00 on the firm.

Nomura (NYSE:NMR) initiated coverage on Visa, starting them with a "Buy" rating.

JPMorgan (NYSE:JPM) maintains its "Overweight" rating on Visa, having a price target of $112.00 on the company.

Visa was trading at $103.01, gaining $0.53, or 0.52 percent, as of 10:31 AM EST.

Visa Inc. (V) Soars to Record High

Global payment firm Visa Inc. (NYSE:V) soared to a record high for the company on Monday, surging to as high as $99.37 on the day.

Along with MasterCard (NYSE:MA), Visa enjoys a relatively strong moat of protection against potential competitors, allowing them to continue to collect ongoing fees and generate solid profit margins.

Not only is that a competitive advantage in a good economic environment, but performs just as strongly in a weak one, as we've been in for years.

Those investors with a conservative bent should experience a good performance from both companies.

Visa (V) (VPG) (XEC) (APA) (APC) (ARI) Get New Coverage

Visa Inc. (NYSE: V), Vishay Precision Group Inc. (NYSE: VPG), Cimarex Energy Co. (NYSE: XEC), Apache (NYSE: APA), Anadarko Petroleum (NYSE: APC) and Apollo Commercial Real Est. Finance Inc. (NYSE: ARI) getting new coverage from analysts.

Nomura initiated coverage on Visa Inc. (NYSE: V). They placed a “Buy” rating on the company.

Sidoti initiated coverage on Vishay Precision Group Inc. (VPG). They placed a “Buy” rating on the company.

Pritchard Capital initiated coverage on Cimarex Energy Co. (XEC). They placed a “Buy” rating on the company.

Robert W. Baird initiated coverage on Apache (APA). They placed an “Outperform” rating and a price target of $129.00 on the company.

Robert W. Baird initiated coverage on Anadarko Petroleum (APC). They placed a “Neutral” rating and a price target of $85.00 on the company.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM) initiated coverage on Apollo Commercial Real Est. Finance Inc. (ARI). They placed a “Neutral” rating and a price target of $14.00 on the company.

Visa (V) (TXRH) (ANN) (USM) (AMGN) (AMR) Downgraded

Visa Inc. (NYSE: V), Texas Roadhouse (NASDAQ: TXRH), AnnTaylor Stores Corp. (NYSE: ANN), United States Cellular Corporation (NYSE: USM), Amgen, Inc. (NASDAQ: AMGN) and AMR Co. (NYSE: AMR) were downgraded by analysts.

Visa Inc. (V) was downgraded by FBR Capital from an “Outperform” rating to a “Market Perform” rating. They have a price target of $96.00 on the company.

Texas Roadhouse (TXRH) was downgraded by Credit Suisse (NYSE:CS) from an “Outperform” rating to a “Neutral” rating. They have a price target of $16.50 on the company.

AnnTaylor Stores Corp. (ANN) was downgraded by Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS) from a “Neutral” rating to a “Sell” rating.

United States Cellular Corporation (USM) was downgraded by Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) from an “Equal Weight” rating to an “Underweight” rating. They have a price target of $35.00 on the company.

Amgen, Inc. (AMGN) was downgraded by Piper Jaffray (NYSE:PJC) from an “Overweight” rating to a “Neutral” rating. They have a price target of $65.00 on the company.

AMR Co. (AMR) was downgraded by Sterne Agee from a “Buy” rating to a “Neutral” rating. They have a price target of $5.00 on the company.

Visa (V) (ABT) (CETV) (ALGT) (CBT) (CCI) Price Targets Changed

Visa Inc. (NYSE: V), Abbott Laboratories (NYSE: ABT), Central European Media Enterprises Ltd. (NASDAQ: CETV), Allegiant Travel (NASDAQ: ALGT), Cabot Co. (NYSE: CBT) and Crown Castle (NYSE: CCI) had price targets on them adjusted by analysts.

Visa Inc. (V) had its price target raised by Morgan Keegan to $120.00.

Abbott Laboratories (ABT) had its price target raised by Deutsche Bank (NYSE:DB) from $53.00 to $58.00. They have a “Hold” rating on the company.

Central European Media Enterprises Ltd. (CETV) had its price target lowered by Morgan Joseph from $25.00 to $18.00. They have a “Buy” rating on the company.

Allegiant Travel (ALGT) had its price target raised by UBS AG (NYSE:UBS) from $58.00 to $60.00. They have a “Buy” rating on the company.

Cabot Co. (CBT) had its price target lowered by Jefferies (NYSE:JEF) to $32.00.

Crown Castle (CCI) had its price target lowered by Deutsche Bank to $56.00.

Visa (V) (BSX) (WCC) (CALX) (XXIA) (CBE) Price Targets Changed

Visa Inc. (NYSE: V), Boston Scientific (NYSE: BSX), WESCO International, Inc. (NYSE: WCC), Calix Networks (NASDAQ: CALX), Ixia (NASDAQ: XXIA) and Cooper Industries PLC (NYSE: CBE) had price targets on them adjusted by analysts.

Visa Inc. (NYSE: V) had its price target raised by JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM) to $112.00.

Boston Scientific (BSX) had its price target lowered by JPMorgan Chase & Co. to $7.00.

WESCO International, Inc. (WCC) had its price target raised by Citigroup (NYSE:C) to $52.00.

Calix Networks (CALX) had its price target lowered by Jefferies (NYSE:JEF) to $11.00.

Ixia (XXIA) had its price target raised by Wunderlich to $13.00.

Cooper Industries PLC (CBE) had its price target lowered by Longbow Research from $73.00 to $60.00. They have a “Buy” rating on the company.

Visa (V) (AXP) (ANN) (WU) (ARO) (ASNA) Get New Coverage

Visa Inc. (NYSE: V), American Express (NYSE: AXP), AnnTaylor Stores Corp. (NYSE: ANN), The Western Union Company (NYSE: WU), Aeropostale, Inc. (NYSE: ARO) and Ascena Retail Group Inc. (NASDAQ: ASNA) getting new coverage from analysts.

William Blair initiated coverage on Visa Inc. (V). They placed an “Outperform” rating on the company.

FBR Capital initiated coverage on AnnTaylor Stores Corp. (ANN). They placed an “Outperform” rating on the company.

William Blair initiated coverage on The Western Union Company (WU). They placed an “Outperform” rating on the company.

FBR Capital initiated coverage on Aeropostale, Inc. (ARO). They placed a “Market Perform” rating on the company.

FBR Capital initiated coverage on Ascena Retail Group Inc. (ASNA). They placed a “Market Perform” rating on the company.

William Blair initiated coverage on American Express (AXP). They placed an “Outperform” rating on the company.

Visa (V) (WPI) (WSR) (FTNT) (HOG) (AKAM) Get New Coverage

Visa Inc. (NYSE: V), Watson Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NYSE: WPI), Whitestone Reit (NYSE: WSR), Fortinet, Inc. (NASDAQ: FTNT), Harley-Davidson, Inc. (NYSE: HOG) and Akamai Technologies (NASDAQ: AKAM) getting new analyst coverage.

Leerink initiated coverage on Watson Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (WPI). They placed a “Market Perform” rating on the company.

Sterne Agee initiated coverage on Visa Inc. (V). They placed a “Buy” rating and a price target of $110.00 on the company.

Ladenburg Thalmann initiated coverage on Whitestone Reit (WSR). They placed a “Buy” rating and a price target of $13.50 on the company.

Jefferies (NYSE:JEF) initiated coverage on Fortinet, Inc. (FTNT). They placed a “Hold” rating on the company.

Keybanc initiated coverage on Harley-Davidson, Inc. (HOG). They placed a “Positive” rating and a price target of $48.00 on the company.

Jefferies initiated coverage on Akamai Technologies (AKAM). They placed an “Underperform” rating and a price target of $18.00 on the company.

Visa (V) (KMP) (LL) (MUSA) (WMS) Have Price Targets Adjusted by Analysts

Visa (NYSE: V), Kinder Morgan Energy Partners LP (NYSE: KMP), Lumber Liquidators (NYSE: LL), Metals USA Holdings Corp (NASDAQ: MUSA) and WMS Industries Inc. (NYSE: WMS) have price targets changed by analysts.

Morgan Keegan raised their price target on Kinder Morgan Energy Partners LP (KMP) to $79.00.

Piper Jaffray (NYSE:PJC) cut their price target on Lumber Liquidators (LL) to $20.00.

Jefferies (NYSE:JEF) cut their price target on Metals USA Holdings Corp (MUSA) to $20.00.

Argus raised their price target on Visa Inc. (V) from $95.00 to $100.00. They have a “buy” rating on the company.

Jefferies cut their price target on WMS Industries Inc. (WMS) to $32.00. They have a “hold” rating on the company.

Ex-Dividend for (V) (VE) (WAG) (WEA) (WHR) (WHX) is May 18

The ex-dividend date for Visa Inc. (NYSE:V), Veolia Environnement (NYSE:VE), Walgreen Company (NYSE:WAG), Western Asset Premier Bond Fund (NYSE:WEA), Whirlpool Corporation (NYSE:WHR) and Whiting USA Trust (NYSE:WHX) is May 18.

Visa Inc. (V) pays a dividend of $0.15 with a yield of 0.76 percent.

Veolia Environnement (VE) pays a dividend of $1.46 with a yield of 4.52percent.

Walgreen Company (WAG) pays a dividend of $0.18 with a yield of 1.65 percent.

Western Asset Premier Bond Fund (WEA) pays a dividend of $0.11 with a yield of 8.57 percent.

Whirlpool Corporation (WHR) pays a dividend of $0.50 with a yield of 2.37 percent.

Whiting USA Trust (WHX) pays a dividend of $0.73 with a yield of 16.71 percent.

Ratings on (TWX) (V) (VLCM) (WBCO) (XOM) Reiterated

Ratings on Time Warner Inc. (NYSE: TWX), Visa Inc. (NYSE: V), Volcom Inc (NASDAQ: VLCM), Washington Banking Company (NASDAQ: WBCO), Warner Chilcott (NASDAQ: WCRX) and Exxon Mobil (NYSE: XOM) reiterated by analysts.

Benchmark Co. reiterated a “buy” rating on Time Warner Inc. (TWX). They have a price target of $44.00 on the company.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM) reiterated an “overweight” rating on Visa Inc. (V).

Jefferies (NYSE:JEF) reiterated a “buy” rating on Volcom Inc (VLCM). They have a price target of $20.00 on the company.

Wunderlich reiterated a “buy” rating on Washington Banking Company (WBCO).

Benchmark Co. reiterated a “sell” rating on Exxon Mobil (XOM). They now have a price target of $74.00 on the company.

Price Targets on (PCLN) (PEP) (V) (ADSK) (AGP) Raised by Analysts

Priceline (NASDAQ: PCLN), PepsiCo, Inc. (NYSE: PEP), Visa Inc. (NYSE: V), Autodesk (NASDAQ: ADSK) and AMERIGROUP Co. (NYSE: AGP) get price targets raised today by analysts.

ThinkEquity raised their price target on Priceline (PCLN) to $630.00. They have a “buy” rating on the company.

UBS AG (NYSE:UBS) raised their price target on shares of PepsiCo, Inc. (NYSE: PEP) to $76.00. They have a “buy” rating on the company.

Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS) raised their price target on Visa Inc. (V) to $88.00. They have a “buy” rating on the company.

Jefferies (NYSE:JEF) raised their price target on Autodesk (ADSK) from $42.00 to $47.00. They have a “hold” rating on the company.

Oppenheimer raised their price target on AMERIGROUP Co. (AGP) from $65.00 to $75.00. They have an “outperform” rating on the company.

Wells (WFC) Testing Visa (V) Microchip Cards

Wells Fargo (NYSE:WFC) announced it will be rolling out a pilot program to test Visa Inc. (NYSE:V) cards embedded with microchips, which will aid the company in expanding places the cards will be accepted around the world.

Outside America businesses have widely adopted the use of chip-enabled technology for authentication rather than magnetic strips.

The new cards will include both EMV chip technology and the traditional magnetic stripe.

According to Wells, the pilot program is the first of its kind by a major American-based bank, and includes approximately 15,000 credit card customers of the bank who travel extensively internationally.

Wells Fargo was trading at $31.10, falling $0.30, or 0.96 percent, as of 10:33 AM EDT.

Visa (V), Mastercard (MA) Jump on Debit Card Fee Delay Expectations

Shares of Visa (NYSE:V) and Mastercard (NYSE:MA) have received a boost on expectations the proposed rules which would limit the amount banks can charge for debit-card swipe fees will be delayed.

Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke recently stated in a letter to Congress that it's very improbable that in the next Federal Reserve meeting they'll be able to meet the deadline of April 21 for the final rules concerning the fees to be put in place.

Growing opposition over limiting the fees is slowing down the process and looking increasingly questionable as to whether they'll become part of the way banks will have to do business.

Visa closed Wednesday at $74.23, gaining $2.03, or 2.81 percent. Mastercard closed at $253.66, up $1.95, or 0.77 percent.

Visa (NYSE:V) Beats Revenue, Earnings Estimates

Citing strong revenue growth in international markets, Visa (NYSE:V) announced an increase in profits for the first quarter of 16 percent.

Revenue for the quarter also rose, jumping to $2.24 billion, up against expectations of $2.23 billion. Earnings rose to $1.23 a share, 2 cents over the expected $1.21.

Driving growth in the quarter were increased use of debit and credit cards, according to the company report.

CEO Joseph Saunders said 60 percent of revenue growth in the quarter came from global markets. That exceeds Visa's goal of about half of revenue growth coming from international markets.

Visa closed Wednesday at $72.09, gaining $1.39, or 1.97 percent.