Kendall Capital Management Sells 5,807 Shares of The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU)

Kendall Capital Management cut its stake in shares of The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU) by 9.3% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 56,592 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 5,807 shares during the period. Kendall Capital Management’s holdings in Western Union were worth $600,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. True Wealth Design LLC bought a new position in Western Union during the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. R Squared Ltd bought a new position in Western Union during the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Independence Bank of Kentucky bought a new position in Western Union during the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB lifted its stake in Western Union by 1,734.7% during the 4th quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 4,862 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $52,000 after acquiring an additional 4,597 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Tompkins Financial Corp bought a new position in Western Union during the 3rd quarter valued at $60,000. 91.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Western Union Trading Up 5.0 %

Shares of Western Union stock opened at $11.62 on Monday. The Western Union Company has a 52-week low of $10.04 and a 52-week high of $14.19. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $10.56 and its 200 day simple moving average is $11.08. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 4.25, a P/E/G ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 0.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.04, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a current ratio of 1.20.

Western Union (NYSE:WU) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The credit services provider reported $0.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.42 by ($0.02). Western Union had a net margin of 22.19% and a return on equity of 96.90%. As a group, research analysts anticipate that The Western Union Company will post 1.79 EPS for the current year.

Western Union Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be issued a dividend of $0.235 per share. This represents a $0.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 8.09%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 17th. Western Union’s payout ratio is presently 34.43%.

Western Union declared that its board has authorized a share buyback plan on Friday, December 13th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the credit services provider to buy up to 27.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are often a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WU has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. JMP Securities restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Western Union in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their target price on 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. Barclays lowered their target price on Western Union from $11.00 to $10.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on Western Union from $10.00 to $9.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, Susquehanna lowered their target price on Western Union from $13.00 to $12.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and nine have given a hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Western Union has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $12.11.

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.