The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU) Shares Sold by Lecap Asset Management Ltd.

Lecap Asset Management Ltd. cut its stake in shares of The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU - Free Report) by 65.7% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 31,307 shares of the credit services provider's stock after selling 59,990 shares during the quarter. Lecap Asset Management Ltd.'s holdings in Western Union were worth $373,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WU. MCF Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Western Union in the first quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Quarry LP boosted its holdings in Western Union by 52.9% in the second quarter. Quarry LP now owns 2,588 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 895 shares in the last quarter. LRI Investments LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Western Union in the first quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. boosted its holdings in shares of Western Union by 89.3% in the second quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 3,226 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 1,522 shares during the period. Finally, Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Western Union by 59.9% in the first quarter. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,292 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $46,000 after acquiring an additional 1,233 shares during the period. 91.81% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Western Union Price Performance

NYSE:WU traded up $0.02 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $11.18. The company's stock had a trading volume of 5,276,171 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,070,146. The business's 50-day moving average is $11.86 and its two-hundred day moving average is $12.38. The company has a market capitalization of $3.78 billion, a PE ratio of 6.85, a PEG ratio of 1.74 and a beta of 0.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.98, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a current ratio of 1.05. The Western Union Company has a 52-week low of $10.92 and a 52-week high of $14.19.

Western Union (NYSE:WU - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The credit services provider reported $0.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.44 by $0.02. Western Union had a return on equity of 123.71% and a net margin of 13.64%. The firm had revenue of $1.04 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.03 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.43 earnings per share. Western Union's revenue was down 5.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts anticipate that The Western Union Company will post 1.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. StockNews.com raised Western Union from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, August 29th. Citigroup reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $13.00 price objective on shares of Western Union in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. UBS Group decreased their price objective on Western Union from $13.50 to $12.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Thursday. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price objective on Western Union from $16.00 to $14.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective 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 issued a hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Western Union presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $12.86.

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.