AlphaQuest LLC Sells 45,473 Shares of The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU)

AlphaQuest LLC lessened its position in The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU - Free Report) by 77.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 13,365 shares of the credit services provider's stock after selling 45,473 shares during the period. AlphaQuest LLC's holdings in Western Union were worth $142,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of WU. Pacer Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in Western Union by 2.2% during the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 50,387 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $534,000 after purchasing an additional 1,072 shares during the last quarter. Tidal Investments LLC boosted its holdings in Western Union by 1.4% during the third quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 88,410 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $1,055,000 after purchasing an additional 1,230 shares during the last quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC boosted its holdings in Western Union by 2.6% during the fourth quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 61,606 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $653,000 after purchasing an additional 1,560 shares during the last quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. boosted its holdings in Western Union by 3.5% during the fourth quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 45,825 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $486,000 after purchasing an additional 1,565 shares during the last quarter. Finally, DGS Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Western Union by 6.8% during the third quarter. DGS Capital Management LLC now owns 27,044 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $323,000 after purchasing an additional 1,727 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 91.81% of the company's stock.

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Western Union Stock Performance

NYSE:WU traded down $0.11 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $10.64. 7,606,191 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,263,168. The Western Union Company has a one year low of $10.04 and a one year high of $14.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.59 billion, a PE ratio of 3.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 0.79. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $10.61 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $11.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.04, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a current ratio of 1.20.

Western Union (NYSE:WU - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The credit services provider reported $0.40 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.42 by ($0.02). Western Union had a return on equity of 96.90% and a net margin of 22.19%. Analysts anticipate that The Western Union Company will post 1.79 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Western Union declared that its board has approved a stock repurchase plan on Friday, December 13th that permits the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the credit services provider to purchase up to 27.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Western Union Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be issued a $0.235 dividend. This represents a $0.94 annualized dividend and a yield of 8.84%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 17th. Western Union's dividend payout ratio is currently 34.43%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently commented on the stock. JMP Securities restated a "market perform" rating on shares of Western Union in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of Western Union from $10.00 to $9.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Susquehanna cut their price target on shares of Western Union from $13.00 to $12.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price target on shares of Western Union from $13.00 to $12.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Finally, Barclays cut their price target on shares of Western Union from $11.00 to $10.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eight have given a hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Western Union presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $12.11.

Western Union Profile

The Western Union Company provides money movement and payment services worldwide. The company operates through Consumer Money Transfer and Consumer Services segments. The Consumer Money Transfer segment facilitates money transfers for international cross-border and intra-country transfers, primarily through a network of retail agent locations, as well as through websites and mobile devices.