CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co Sells 27,157 Shares of The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU)

CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co reduced its stake in The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU - Free Report) by 7.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 315,794 shares of the credit services provider's stock after selling 27,157 shares during the period. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co owned 0.09% of Western Union worth $3,343,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Pacer Advisors Inc. increased 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 valued at $534,000 after buying an additional 1,072 shares during the period. Tidal Investments LLC increased its holdings in shares of Western Union by 1.4% in the 3rd quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 88,410 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $1,055,000 after acquiring an additional 1,230 shares during the period. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC raised its position 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 acquiring an additional 1,560 shares in the last quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. lifted its stake 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 purchasing an additional 1,565 shares during the last quarter. Finally, DGS Capital Management LLC boosted its position 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 valued at $323,000 after purchasing an additional 1,727 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 91.81% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have commented on WU. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price target on shares of Western Union from $12.00 to $11.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday. Susquehanna decreased their target price on shares of Western Union from $12.00 to $11.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday. UBS Group reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $10.50 price target (down from $11.00) on shares of Western Union in a research report on Thursday. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price objective on Western Union from $14.00 to $13.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday. Finally, JMP Securities reaffirmed a "market perform" rating on shares of Western Union in a research report on Thursday. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and seven have issued a hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Western Union presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $10.78.

Western Union Trading Down 0.4 %

Western Union stock opened at $10.14 on Friday. The Western Union Company has a 52 week low of $9.00 and a 52 week high of $13.65. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $10.41 and a 200 day moving average price of $10.67. 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 capitalization of $3.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 3.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 0.69.

Western Union (NYSE:WU - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data 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. Western Union had a net margin of 22.19% and a return on equity of 96.90%. The business had revenue of $983.60 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.01 billion. Sell-side analysts anticipate that The Western Union Company will post 1.79 EPS for the current year.

Western Union Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 17th were paid a dividend of $0.235 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 17th. This represents a $0.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 9.27%. Western Union's payout ratio is currently 34.43%.

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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