UBS Group Lowers Western Union (NYSE:WU) Price Target to $12.00

Western Union (NYSE:WU - Free Report) had its target price reduced by UBS Group from $13.50 to $12.00 in a report published on Thursday, Benzinga reports. UBS Group currently has a neutral rating on the credit services provider's stock.

WU has been the subject of several other reports. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price target on shares of Western Union from $16.00 to $14.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. StockNews.com raised Western Union from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, August 29th. Citigroup restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $13.00 price target on shares of Western Union in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on Western Union from $14.00 to $12.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, August 20th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eight have assigned a hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $12.86.

Western Union Stock Performance

NYSE WU traded down $0.38 on Thursday, reaching $11.17. The stock had a trading volume of 10,827,405 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,064,278. The stock has a market cap of $3.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.85, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.74 and a beta of 0.86. Western Union has a 12-month low of $10.92 and a 12-month high of $14.19. The business's 50-day moving average price is $11.86 and its 200 day moving average price is $12.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.98, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a current ratio of 1.05.

Western Union (NYSE:WU - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The credit services provider reported $0.46 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.44 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $1.04 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.03 billion. Western Union had a return on equity of 123.71% and a net margin of 13.64%. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.43 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that Western Union will post 1.76 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Western Union

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its position in shares of Western Union by 7,569.8% in the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 13,905,891 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $194,405,000 after acquiring an additional 13,724,584 shares in the last quarter. LSV Asset Management boosted its stake in shares of Western Union by 17.7% during the 2nd quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 9,736,930 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $118,985,000 after purchasing an additional 1,462,853 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Western Union by 62.8% during the second quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 3,730,450 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $45,586,000 after buying an additional 1,439,310 shares in the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP raised its position in shares of Western Union by 52.0% in the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 3,337,466 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $40,784,000 after buying an additional 1,142,400 shares during the last quarter. Finally, M&G Plc purchased a new position in shares of Western Union during the first quarter valued at approximately $12,051,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.81% of the company's stock.

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.