38,965 Shares in The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU) Purchased by EntryPoint Capital LLC

EntryPoint Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 38,965 shares of the credit services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $413,000.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the business. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its holdings in Western Union by 20.0% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,698,559 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $20,264,000 after buying an additional 283,479 shares during the period. Citigroup Inc. raised its position in shares of Western Union by 19.0% in the 3rd quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 523,676 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $6,247,000 after acquiring an additional 83,715 shares in the last quarter. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Western Union during the 3rd quarter worth $734,000. Kestra Investment Management LLC boosted its position in Western Union by 50.6% during the fourth quarter. Kestra Investment Management LLC now owns 122,956 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $1,303,000 after purchasing an additional 41,317 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Range Financial Group LLC grew its stake in Western Union by 828.1% in the fourth quarter. Range Financial Group LLC now owns 93,959 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $996,000 after purchasing an additional 83,835 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 91.81% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price target on shares of Western Union from $13.00 to $12.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, December 9th. JMP Securities restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Western Union in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Barclays reduced their price target on Western Union from $11.00 to $10.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Susquehanna lowered their price objective on Western Union from $13.00 to $12.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on Western Union from $10.00 to $9.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eight have assigned a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $12.11.

Western Union Stock Down 0.6 %

Shares of WU stock opened at $10.43 on Wednesday. The Western Union Company has a fifty-two week low of $10.04 and a fifty-two week high of $14.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.52 billion, a PE ratio of 3.82, 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. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $10.62 and its 200-day simple moving average is $10.96.

Western Union (NYSE:WU) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The credit services provider reported $0.40 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.42 by ($0.02). Western Union had a return on equity of 96.90% and a net margin of 22.19%. Equities analysts expect that The Western Union Company will post 1.79 earnings per share for the current year.

Western Union Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Monday, March 17th will be given a dividend of $0.235 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 17th. This represents a $0.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 9.01%. Western Union’s dividend 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 stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

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.