Lazard Asset Management LLC Purchases 595,681 Shares of The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU)

Lazard Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU) by 304.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 791,280 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 595,681 shares during the quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC owned about 0.23% of Western Union worth $8,387,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC boosted its position in Western Union by 10.9% during the fourth quarter. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC now owns 68,237 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $723,000 after purchasing an additional 6,727 shares during the period. 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 worth $1,303,000 after purchasing an additional 41,317 shares during the period. Foresight Capital Management Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in Western Union during the fourth quarter worth approximately $922,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in Western Union during the fourth quarter worth approximately $705,000. Finally, Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its position in Western Union by 19.1% during the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 480,543 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $5,094,000 after purchasing an additional 76,900 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 91.81% of the company’s stock.

Western Union Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE WU opened at $9.66 on Thursday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $10.18 and a 200 day simple moving average of $10.51. The company has a current ratio of 1.20, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.04. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 3.54, a PEG ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 0.72. The Western Union Company has a one year low of $9.00 and a one year high of $13.32.

Western Union (NYSE:WU) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The credit services provider reported $0.41 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.40 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $983.60 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.01 billion. Western Union had a return on equity of 96.90% and a net margin of 22.19%. Western Union’s revenue was down 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.45 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that The Western Union Company will post 1.79 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WU has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Monness Crespi & Hardt cut Western Union from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $7.50 target price for the company. in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on Western Union from $10.00 to $9.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. JMP Securities reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Western Union in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price target on Western Union from $14.00 to $13.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Finally, Susquehanna cut their price target on Western Union from $12.00 to $11.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and seven have issued a hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $10.78.

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.