Visa Inc. management check
V · Financials · Transaction & Payment Processing Services · CEO McInerney
Filings as of
3 good · 2 to watch · 2 flagged, across the seven questions below.
- Flag
Have owners done well?
Trailed its chosen peers$100 invested at the start of fiscal 2021 grew to $177, against $246 for the peer group the company picked itself.
- Good
Does pay follow performance?
Pay rose and fell with returnsOver 5 years, the CEO's pay actually paid (equity valued at the share price) had a correlation of 0.63 with shareholder return. 1 means pay moved in step; below 0, the opposite way.
- Good
What does the CEO cost owners?
0.2% of net income$31.6m of reported pay in fiscal 2025, against $20.1bn of net income.
- Flag
Do they own the stock?
CEO stake ≈ 0.2 years of payThe CEO holds 21,049 shares, directly or through trusts (unvested awards not counted): about 0.2 years of pay. 5 insiders sold $61.1m in the last six months and none bought. 10 of 14 sales ran on pre-arranged 10b5-1 plans.
- Watch
Are owners being diluted?
Stock pay 2.2% of revenueStock-based pay was 2.2% of revenue in the latest year.
- Watch
Is leadership stable?
2 CEOs in the pay tableCEOs in the pay table: Kelly, McInerney. 1 filings under 8-K item 5.02 (officers or directors leaving or joining, or new pay arrangements) in the last 3 years.
- Good
Are the books clean?
No red flags on fileNo restatements, auditor changes or late filings since 2021.
Against the S&P 500
Each check's score (0–100) and how it compares: the share of ranked S&P 500 companies it matches or beats, and the median in Financials.
| Check | Score | At or above | Sector median |
|---|---|---|---|
| Owner returns | 15 | 49 | |
| Pay for performance | 82 | 83 | |
| CEO cost | 100 | 67 | |
| Skin in the game | 0 | 51 | |
| Dilution | 85 | 69 | |
| Stable leadership | 60 | 80 | |
| Clean books | 100 | 100 |
Closest peers
Others in Transaction & Payment Processing Services, by management score. Visa Inc. is 51st of 72 in its sector.
- 107MAMastercard76
- 209CPAYCorpay68
- 250XYZBlock, Inc.64
- 273VVisa Inc.63
- 316GPNGlobal Payments60
- 359PYPLPayPal57
- 389FISVFiserv55
- 433JKHYJack Henry & Associates49
- 462FISFidelity National Information Services42
Pay versus performance
From the proxy statement filed December 8, 2025. "Actually paid" values stock awards at the share price, so it rises and falls with the stock.
| Fiscal year | CEO | CEO pay | Actually paid | Other executives (avg) | $100 became | Peers | Net income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | McInerney | $31.6m | $55.8m | $14.5m | $177 | $246 | $20.1bn |
| 2024 | McInerney | $26.0m | $37.5m | $13.5m | $142 | $204 | $19.7bn |
| 2023 | McInerney, Kelly | $29.7m | $52.8m | $15.4m | $117 | $146 | $17.3bn |
| 2022 | Kelly | $28.1m | $20.0m | $14.3m | $90 | $131 | $15.0bn |
| 2021 | Kelly | $30.9m | $49.0m | $14.7m | $112 | $159 | $12.3bn |
The board says pay is tied most to EPS - PS adjusted. Its other key measures: EPS – PS adjusted, Net Income Growth – VIP adjusted, Net Revenue Growth – VIP adjusted, Relative TSR, EPS Growth – VIP adjusted.
Insiders and the CEO's stake
Ryan Mcinerney (Chief Executive Officer) held 21,049 shares directly after their latest Form 4 on Oct 1, 2026, roughly $7.6m at that filing's price.
5 insiders sold $61.1m in the last six months and none bought. 10 of 14 sales ran on pre-arranged 10b5-1 plans.
- SoldRyan McinerneyChief Executive Officer · 10b5-1 plan$27.9mOct 1, 2026
- SoldTullier Kelly MahonVICE CHAIR, CHF PPL & CORP AFF$20.9mJul 30, 2026
- SoldRajat TanejaPRESIDENT, TECHNOLOGY$6.7mAug 21, 2026
- SoldChris SuhCHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER$3.5mMay 12, 2026
Leadership and governance on file
- Sep 29, 2025Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Oct 18, 2023Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Jun 20, 2023Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Apr 10, 2023Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Feb 16, 2023Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Feb 1, 2023Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Nov 17, 2022Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Oct 11, 2022Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Jun 27, 2022Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Apr 11, 2022Leadership change8-K 5.02
Latest shareholder vote results: Jan 28, 2026, including the say-on-pay vote.
Where the money went
Over 2021–2025: $86.0bn returned to owners in buybacks and dividends, 102% of net income, and $3.7bn of pay in stock.
| Fiscal year | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $24.1bn | $29.3bn | $32.7bn | $35.9bn | $40.0bn |
| Net income | $12.3bn | $15.0bn | $17.3bn | $19.7bn | $20.1bn |
| Stock-based pay | $542.0m | $602.0m | $765.0m | $850.0m | $897.0m |
| Buybacks | $8.7bn | $11.6bn | $12.1bn | $16.7bn | $18.3bn |
| Dividends | $2.8bn | $3.2bn | $3.8bn | $4.2bn | $4.6bn |
| Diluted shares | — | — | — | — | — |
Educational only, not investment advice. Figures are as filed with the SEC: pay from the proxy's pay-versus-performance table, capital allocation from 10-K XBRL data, insider trades from Form 4s over the last six months, events from the last 5 years of filings. The peer group is the one the company chose. See the method.