The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU) Given Average Rating of "Reduce" by Brokerages

The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU - Get Free Report) has earned a consensus recommendation of "Reduce" from the eleven analysts that are covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation and eight have issued a hold recommendation on the company. The average 12-month price target among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $12.63.

WU has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. 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. StockNews.com raised Western Union from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their target price on shares of Western Union from $13.00 to $12.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, December 9th. UBS Group reduced their target price on shares of Western Union from $13.50 to $12.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, Barclays lowered their price target on shares of Western Union from $11.00 to $10.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Western Union

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. True Wealth Design LLC purchased a new stake in Western Union during the 3rd quarter worth about $25,000. Quarry LP lifted its stake in Western Union by 52.9% during the second quarter. Quarry LP now owns 2,588 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 895 shares during the last quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. boosted its holdings in 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 purchasing an additional 1,522 shares in the last quarter. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Western Union by 31.1% in the second quarter. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,316 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $53,000 after purchasing an additional 1,024 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Tompkins Financial Corp acquired a new stake in Western Union during the third quarter worth approximately $60,000. 91.81% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Western Union Stock Performance

Shares of WU traded down $0.14 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $10.76. The stock had a trading volume of 3,365,730 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,946,479. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $11.10 and a 200 day moving average price of $11.79. Western Union has a fifty-two week low of $10.51 and a fifty-two week high of $14.19. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 5.52, a PEG ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 0.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.96, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a current ratio of 1.10.

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 (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.44 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $1.04 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.03 billion. Western Union had a return on equity of 120.39% and a net margin of 16.07%. Western Union's revenue for the quarter was down 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.43 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Western Union will post 1.77 EPS for the current year.

Western Union announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Friday, December 13th that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the credit services provider to repurchase up to 27.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

Western Union Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Investors of record on Monday, December 23rd will be issued a $0.235 dividend. This represents a $0.94 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 8.74%. Western Union's dividend payout ratio is presently 48.21%.

Western Union Company 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.