New York, February 25, 2026, 18:44 EST — After hours trading.
- Visa shares bounced higher Wednesday, trimming some of the losses from earlier in the week.
- Payments stocks have been volatile, caught up in the broader debate over the speed at which AI might upend business models.
- Eyes shift to early-March conference appearances, where investors hope for clearer readouts on spending patterns and company strategy.
Visa Inc. finished the session at $312.99 on Wednesday, rising 1.9% as payments stocks found their footing following a steep drop earlier this week. 1
Stocks are rebounding as traders pick through a new wave of artificial intelligence jitters that rattled markets on Monday. “You’ve seen the market react to headlines, it’s ‘sell first, assess later,’” said Tom Hainlin, national investment strategist at U.S. Bank Wealth Management. 2
Wall Street had found its footing by Wednesday. “We’re in the middle of a push-pull here between some negative sentiment and some extreme price action,” said Zach Hill, head of portfolio management at Horizon Investments, as stocks moved higher. The Dow, S&P 500, and Nasdaq all ended the day up. 3
Visa dropped 4.5% Monday, closing at $306.52. Shares picked up a bit on Tuesday, with gains carrying over into Wednesday, but the stock remains under its February 20 close of $320.95. Monday’s trading volume surged as selling swept across the sector. 4
Traders pointed to what’s being called an “AI scare trade”—essentially, investors dumping stocks they see as vulnerable if AI ends up shaking up transaction routing and pricing. According to Bloomberg, a bearish call from little-known Citrini Research got the ball rolling Monday, dragging down shares in delivery, payments, and software firms. 5
It wasn’t only Visa taking losses. Mastercard dropped 5.8% Monday, Visa slipped 4.5%, according to the Wall Street Journal, as investors reacted to persistent AI disruption worries. 6
This week, fundamentals have stayed in the background rather than moving the market. Still, Visa managed to beat Wall Street’s expectations for both profit and revenue last month, as holiday spending boosted card usage, Reuters reported. 7
Risks to the downside haven’t gone away. Fresh moves on U.S. card fees or tighter regulation could pile on more pressure. Visa and Mastercard are still seeking court signoff for a reworked $38 billion swipe-fee deal with merchants, according to Reuters. (Those swipe fees are what merchants pay to accept cards.) 8
Visa execs are on deck for a pair of conference appearances in the coming weeks, and investors will be listening closely. Chief Product and Strategy Officer Jack Forestell is scheduled to speak March 3 at the Morgan Stanley Technology, Media & Telecom Conference. Then, on March 11, Commercial & Money Movement Solutions President Chris Newkirk is slated for the Wolfe Research FinTech Forum. 9
Heading into the next session, traders are eyeing whether Wednesday’s rebound sticks. As fresh AI headlines land, the market is reshuffling around “AI winners” and “AI losers”—and payments stocks have landed squarely in the middle of the action.
