Barclays PLC Has $5.16 Million Stake in The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU)

Barclays PLC trimmed its position in The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU - Free Report) by 20.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 486,560 shares of the credit services provider's stock after selling 121,894 shares during the period. Barclays PLC owned approximately 0.14% of Western Union worth $5,159,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of WU. R Squared Ltd acquired a new position in Western Union during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Independence Bank of Kentucky acquired a new position in Western Union during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Huntington National Bank grew its position in Western Union by 662.7% in the fourth quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 3,722 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 3,234 shares in the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB increased its stake in Western Union by 1,734.7% in the 4th quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 4,862 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $52,000 after buying an additional 4,597 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sound Income Strategies LLC bought a new stake in Western Union during the 4th quarter worth about $53,000. 91.81% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently issued reports on WU shares. UBS Group reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and issued a $10.50 target price (down previously from $11.00) on shares of Western Union in a research report on Thursday. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on Western Union from $10.00 to $9.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Monness Crespi & Hardt downgraded Western Union from a "neutral" rating to a "sell" rating and set a $7.50 price objective for the company. in a report on Thursday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their target price on shares of Western Union from $12.00 to $11.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. Finally, Susquehanna cut their price target on shares of Western Union from $12.00 to $11.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and seven have assigned a hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Western Union has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $10.78.

Western Union Stock Down 0.4 %

Shares of WU opened at $10.14 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $3.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 3.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 0.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.04, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a current ratio of 1.20. The Western Union Company has a 52 week low of $9.00 and a 52 week high of $13.60. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $10.41 and its 200 day simple moving average is $10.66.

Western Union (NYSE:WU - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The credit services provider reported $0.41 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.40 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $983.60 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.01 billion. Western Union had a return on equity of 96.90% and a net margin of 22.19%. On average, analysts forecast that The Western Union Company will post 1.79 earnings per share for the current year.

Western Union Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 17th were issued a dividend of $0.235 per share. This represents a $0.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 9.27%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 17th. Western Union's dividend payout ratio is currently 35.07%.

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.

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