Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership Invests $22.85 Million in The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU)

Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership acquired a new stake in The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 2,155,491 shares of the credit services provider's stock, valued at approximately $22,848,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership owned about 0.64% of Western Union as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Pacer Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Western Union by 2.2% in the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 50,387 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $534,000 after purchasing an additional 1,072 shares during the period. Tidal Investments LLC raised its position in Western Union by 1.4% during the 3rd quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 88,410 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $1,055,000 after purchasing an additional 1,230 shares in the last quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Western Union by 2.6% in the 4th quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 61,606 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $653,000 after buying an additional 1,560 shares during the period. D.A. Davidson & CO. grew its position in shares of Western Union by 3.5% during the 4th quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 45,825 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $486,000 after buying an additional 1,565 shares in the last quarter. Finally, DGS Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of 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 valued at $323,000 after buying an additional 1,727 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.81% of the company's stock.

Western Union Stock Down 5.9 %

Shares of Western Union stock traded down $0.58 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $9.12. The company's stock had a trading volume of 13,122,953 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,573,277. The Western Union Company has a 1-year low of $9.00 and a 1-year high of $13.93. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $10.58 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $10.84. The company has a quick ratio of 1.10, a current ratio of 1.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.04. The company has a market cap of $3.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 3.34, a P/E/G ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 0.69.

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

Western Union declared that its board has initiated 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 often an indication that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Western Union Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 17th were issued a $0.235 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 17th. This represents a $0.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 10.31%. Western Union's dividend payout ratio is currently 34.43%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a "sector perform" rating and issued a $14.00 price objective on shares of Western Union in a research note on Thursday, April 3rd. Susquehanna lowered 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 report on Wednesday, February 5th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price objective on shares of Western Union from $13.00 to $12.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, December 9th. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on Western Union from $10.00 to $9.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, JMP Securities reaffirmed a "market perform" rating on shares of Western Union in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eight have issued a hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Western Union presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $12.11.

About Western Union

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.