Program helping veterans find civilian work
Edmonton Watch
Alberta is spending $1.2 million on a program that helps veterans and first responders transition into civilian careers.
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Globe and Mail
3 hours ago
- Globe and Mail
MA, V, or XYZ: Which Fintech Stock Is Wall Street's Best Pick?
Macro uncertainty, geopolitical concerns, and increased competition could impact consumer spending and weigh on the performance of fintech stocks. Last week, fears about retail giants considering the launch of their own stablecoins dragged down stocks of fintech giants. Nonetheless, analysts believe in the resilience of several fintech stocks. With this backdrop in mind, we used TipRanks' Stock Comparison Tool to place Mastercard (MA), Visa (V), and Block (XYZ) against each other to find the best fintech stock, according to Wall Street analysts. Confident Investing Starts Here: Mastercard (NYSE:MA) Mastercard boasts a vast payments network and a solid brand name. MA stock has risen about 8% so far in 2025. The payments processing behemoth reported a 9% growth in its gross dollar volume (on a local currency basis) to $2.4 trillion in the first quarter of 2025. The company is focused on innovation to drive further growth. It launched Mastercard Agent Pay, its new Agentic Payments Program, and will work with companies like Microsoft (MSFT) and OpenAI. Mastercard has also entered into a strategic partnership with Corpay to offer an enhanced suite of corporate cross-border payment solutions. Mastercard sees its value-added services, which complement its core payments network, as a key growth driver. Interestingly, 85% of the company's value-added services and solutions revenues are recurring in nature, presenting a stable baseline for growth. Despite ongoing macro challenges, Mastercard remains confident about delivering a resilient performance, supported by its diversified business model. Is Mastercard Stock a Good Buy? On Friday, Visa and Mastercard stocks declined 5% each in reaction to a Wall Street Journal report that retail giants Amazon (AMZN) and Walmart (WMT) are exploring issuing their own stablecoins to shift high volumes of transactions outside the traditional financial system and save billions of dollars in fees. Reacting to the news, Barclays analyst Ramsey El Assal reiterated a Buy rating on Mastercard stock with a price target of $650 and a Buy rating on Visa stock with a price target of $396. While Assal sees notable potential in stablecoin technology and remains optimistic about its broader applications, he believes retail payments will be a challenging area for adoption. He contends that the concerns about the impact on Visa and Mastercard are exaggerated. Assal stated that he views any related weakness as a buying opportunity. With 20 Buys and three Holds, Mastercard stock scores a Strong Buy consensus rating. At $639.10, the average MA stock price target indicates 12.4% upside potential from current levels. See more MA analyst ratings Visa (NYSE:V) Payments processing giant Visa delivered a resilient performance in the March quarter despite a challenging macro backdrop. The company reported market-beating results for the second quarter of Fiscal 2025 (ended March 31, 2025), with payments volume rising 7.5% (constant currency basis) to $3.34 trillion. Visa's Q2 FY25 revenue was supported by strength in cross-border volume and processed transactions. Despite macro challenges, the company is confident about generating solid performance, driven by its strategy across key offerings, a diversified business model, and a focus on innovation. Is Visa Stock a Buy, Sell, or Hold? Following a Wall Street Journal article on Amazon (AMZN) and Walmart's (WMT) potential issue of their own stablecoins, William Blair analyst Andrew Jeffrey encouraged investors to accumulate shares of Visa and Mastercard on pullback, as he does not believe that stablecoins are well suited for B2C commerce, even as merchants view them as a potential means of lowering card acceptance costs. Jeffrey's opinion is backed by three reasons. Firstly, consumers are habituated to the ease of use and security of traditional cards. Secondly, there is no stablecoin standard. Lastly, Visa and Mastercard are building stablecoin infrastructure that can support commerce on their platforms, which can help them to continue partnering with banks for issuance while bringing down merchants' acceptance costs. Overall, Visa stock scores a Strong Buy consensus rating based on 24 Buys and four Holds. The average VISA stock price target of $388.85 indicates 9.4% upside potential from current levels. VISA stock has risen about 12.5% so far this year. Block (NYSE:XYZ) Fintech company Block operates two ecosystems: Square for addressing merchants' financial needs and Cash App for peer-to-peer payments. It is also growing its Bitcoin (BTC-USD) platform and recently announced the launch of Bitcoin payments on Square. XYZ stock has risen 12.4% over the past month, but is still down about 24% so far in 2025 due to concerns over a slowdown in growth amid intense competition. Last month, Block reported dismal earnings for the first quarter of 2025 and lowered its full-year gross profit outlook, citing weak consumer spending due to macro woes and lower-than-anticipated inflows in what is generally seen to be a strong tax refund season. In the Q1 shareholder letter, management mentioned the recent deceleration in growth and stated that they expect Cash App gross profit growth and overall Block gross profit growth to 'significantly accelerate' starting in the third quarter. The company said that it expects the rollout of Cash App Borrow to more customers and an increase in Borrow limits to drive gross profit growth through increased originations and enhanced unit economics. Is XYZ Stock a Good Buy? Earlier this month, Evercore analyst Adam Frisch upgraded Block Stock to Buy from Hold and increased the price target to $75 from $58. Frisch thinks that the initial concerns around Block's aggressive lending following its first-quarter earnings have eased. He believes that the company's lending strategy is more balanced than feared, given a diversified risk profile and controlled expansion, especially within Cash App Borrow. Frisch also noted that low-end consumer spending remains stable, supported by steady unemployment deposits and steady payment activity. The analyst noted recent product launches at Square, including new hardware and a consolidated app, as favorable indications of development efficiency following an internal reorganization. He expects the revamped sales efforts and product improvements to drive Square's growth. Frisch thinks that XYZ stock is attractively valued compared to its peers and historical multiples. Turning to Wall Street, Block stock scores a Moderate Buy consensus rating based on 29 Buys, eight Holds, and two Sell recommendations. The average XYZ stock price target of $66.25 indicates a modest upside potential of 2.2% from current levels. See more XYZ analyst ratings Conclusion Wall Street is bullish on Visa and Mastercard stocks and cautiously optimistic on Block. Analysts see a slightly higher upside potential in Mastercard stock than in Visa stock. They are confident about continued growth in Mastercard, driven by its extensive network, dominant position, innovation, and strength in value-added services.
Canada Standard
3 hours ago
- Canada Standard
"Concluding a productive Canada visit": PM Modi departs for Croatia
Kananaskis [Canada], June 18 (ANI): Prime Minister Narendra Modi concluded his visit to Canada, where he participated in the G7 Summit and departed for Croatia. During his visit, PM Modi expressed gratitude to the people and government of Canada for hosting a successful G7 Summit and underscored how India remains committed to the cause of global peace, prosperity and security. In a post on X, PM Modi wrote, 'Concluding a productive Canada visit. Thankful to the Canadian people and Government for hosting a successful G7 Summit, which witnessed fruitful discussions on diverse global issues. We remain committed to furthering global peace, prosperity and sustainability.' The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) also highlighted the significance of the visit in a post on X, stating, 'PM @narendramodi concludes a very productive visit to Canada! Held fruitful dialogue on key issues in the global context of energy security, technology, and innovation at the @G7 Summit. Met with several leaders & discussed bilateral ties. Next stop- Croatia' Prime Minister Narendra Modi had arrived at the Pomeroy Kananaskis Mountain Lodge in Canada on Tuesday to attend the G7 Summit. Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney received PM Modi as he arrived at the summit venue in Kananaskis, Alberta. In a series of high-level meetings held on the sidelines of the G7 Summit in Canada, PM Modi highlighted India's efforts to strengthen global partnerships and champion the cause of the Global South. He held discussions with Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission. Antonio Costa, President of the European Council. Building on these interactions, PM Modi emphasised solidarity with the Global South after meetings with leaders from Brazil and South Africa. He described 'outstanding conversations' with President Cyril Ramaphosa of South Africa and President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva of Brazil, reaffirming their shared commitment to addressing issues vital to the Global South and working towards a better future for coming generations. Alongside these engagements, Prime Minister Narendra Modi also held insightful deliberations with Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba of Japan on the sidelines of the G7 Summit in Canada. (ANI)
Canada Standard
3 hours ago
- Canada Standard
"Calibrated steps to restore stability": Foreign Secy Vikram Misri on improving India-Canada ties
Kananaskis [Canada], June 18 (ANI): In a significant development, India and Canada have taken steps to restore stability to their bilateral relationship. According to Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri, the two Prime Ministers agreed to take calibrated steps to improve ties, starting with the restoration of High Commissioners to each other's capitals. 'The Prime Ministers agreed to take calibrated steps to restore stability to this very important relationship and the first of these steps that was agreed on was to restore High Commissioners to each other's capitals at an early date. Other diplomatic steps will follow in due course,' said Misri. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau held a key meeting on the sidelines of the G7 Summit in Kananaskis, Canada, focused on restoring and strengthening bilateral ties, the Ministry of External Affairs said. India and Canada also agreed to resume senior and working-level mechanisms and discussions in various areas, including: trade, people-to-people contact, connectivity and collaboration in key areas like, cooperating on clean energy and technology initiatives, collaborating on digital infrastructure projects, exploring opportunities for cooperation in artificial intelligence and discussing potential collaboration on food security and critical minerals. Misri added, 'The two Prime Ministers also agreed to resume senior and working level mechanisms and discussions in a host of areas related to trade, people-to-people contact and connectivity. All of them intended to bring greater momentum to the relationship. The two leaders also discussed potential collaboration in a host of issues related to clean energy, clean technology, digital infrastructure, artificial intelligence, food security, critical minerals and supply chains.' Addressing the ongoing trade negotiations, Foreign Secretary Misri said, 'In view of the trade negotiations between the two countries that are currently paused, the two leaders also decided to instruct their officials to take it up at an early date. The two leaders agreed to stay in touch and meet once again at the earliest possible opportunity.' This meeting marked a positive step towards reviving India-Canada relations with a focus on multiple strategic areas and renewed diplomatic engagement. As part of this renewed engagement, Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived at the Pomeroy Kananaskis Mountain Lodge in Canada on Tuesday to attend the G7 Summit, where Canadian PM Mark Carney warmly received him at the venue in Kananaskis, Alberta. This marks his sixth consecutive participation in the G7 Summit and his first visit to Canada in a decade. PM Modi received a ceremonial welcome at the Calgary airport, where India's acting high commissioner, Chinmoy Naik, was among those who received him. Upon arriving in Calgary, Canada, PM Modi on Monday (local time) said he will meet various leaders at the G7 Summit and share his thoughts on important global issues. PM Modi said he will also emphasise the priorities of the Global South. This visit is part of PM Modi's three-nation official tour, which began with Cyprus and will conclude with Croatia. In a post on X, PM Modi stated, 'Landed in Calgary, Canada, to take part in the G7 Summit. Will be meeting various leaders at the Summit and sharing my thoughts on important global issues. Will also be emphasising the priorities of the Global South.' Ministry of External Affairs official spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said that PM Modi will be participating in G7 discussions on the future of energy security, including diversification, technology, infrastructure and investment, to ensure access and affordability in a changing world. 'At the invitation of PM @MarkJCarney, PM @narendramodi arrives in Alberta, Canada for the G7 Summit. PM will be participating in @G7 discussions on the future of energy security, including diversification, technology, infrastructure and investment, to ensure access and affordability in a changing world. PM will also hold several bilateral meetings on the sidelines,' Jaiswal posted on X. The Prime Minister arrived in Canada after concluding his visit to Cyprus. PM Modi's visit to Canada marks a significant moment in bilateral ties following a phase of strained diplomatic relations. On Monday, India's Acting High Commissioner to Canada, Chinmoy Naik, expressed optimism over discussions set to be held between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Canadian counterpart, Mark Carney, on the sidelines of the G7 Summit in Alberta. Speaking to ANI, Naik stated that PM Modi has been invited to the G7 Summit by Carney and noted that India will be participating in the G7 Summit as a guest country for the sixth time. He stated that India at the G7 Summit will speak about energy security, innovation, and new technologies like AI. The G7 Summit is an annual gathering of leaders from the United States, United Kingdom, France, Germany, Japan, Italy, Canada, and the European Union (EU). This marks PM Modi's sixth consecutive participation in the G7 Summit. (ANI)
