TransUnion (NYSE:TRU) Receives Consensus Rating of "Moderate Buy" from Analysts

Shares of TransUnion (NYSE:TRU - Get Free Report) have been given an average recommendation of "Moderate Buy" by the fifteen analysts that are covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $111.64.

TRU has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada restated an "outperform" rating and set a $121.00 price target on shares of TransUnion in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on shares of TransUnion from $104.00 to $130.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a "hold" rating on shares of TransUnion in a research note on Friday. William Blair reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of TransUnion in a research note on Friday. Finally, Oppenheimer reduced their target price on shares of TransUnion from $115.00 to $112.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th.

Insider Transactions at TransUnion

In other news, insider Steven M. Chaouki sold 1,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $93.60, for a total transaction of $93,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 59,488 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,568,076.80. This trade represents a 1.65 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director George M. Awad sold 12,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $100.00, for a total transaction of $1,200,000.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 27,026 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,702,600. The trade was a 30.75 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 18,590 shares of company stock valued at $1,854,218. Corporate insiders own 0.22% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of TransUnion

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Huntington National Bank grew its stake in shares of TransUnion by 84.5% during the third quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 286 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 131 shares during the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its stake in shares of TransUnion by 82.1% during the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 428 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 193 shares during the last quarter. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd bought a new stake in shares of TransUnion during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $40,000. True Wealth Design LLC grew its stake in shares of TransUnion by 4,590.0% during the third quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 469 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $49,000 after purchasing an additional 459 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda bought a new stake in shares of TransUnion during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $47,000.

TransUnion Stock Performance

TRU stock traded down $0.47 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $99.79. 2,429,990 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,398,812. The company has a quick ratio of 1.68, a current ratio of 1.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19. TransUnion has a 52 week low of $66.07 and a 52 week high of $113.17. The business has a 50-day moving average of $95.13 and a two-hundred day moving average of $97.96. The firm has a market capitalization of $19.45 billion, a PE ratio of 86.77, a P/E/G ratio of 1.16 and a beta of 1.63.

TransUnion (NYSE:TRU - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The business services provider reported $0.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.97 by ($0.14). TransUnion had a net margin of 5.47% and a return on equity of 15.38%. The firm had revenue of $1.04 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.03 billion. As a group, equities analysts predict that TransUnion will post 3.44 EPS for the current fiscal year.

TransUnion Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 27th will be issued a dividend of $0.115 per share. This is a positive change from TransUnion's previous quarterly dividend of $0.11. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 27th. This represents a $0.46 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.46%. TransUnion's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.52%.

TransUnion announced that its board has authorized a stock buyback program on Thursday, February 13th that permits the company to buyback $500.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization permits the business services provider to reacquire up to 2.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically an indication that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

TransUnion Company Profile

TransUnion operates as a global consumer credit reporting agency that provides risk and information solutions. The company operates through U.S. Markets, International, and Consumer Interactive segments. The U.S. Markets segment provides consumer reports, actionable insights, and analytic services to businesses, which uses its services to acquire new customers; assess consumer ability to pay for services; identify cross-selling opportunities; measure and manage debt portfolio risk; collect debt; verify consumer identities; and mitigate fraud risk.