The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU) Receives Average Rating of “Reduce” from Analysts

Shares of The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU) have been given an average rating of “Reduce” by the ten ratings firms that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and seven have issued a hold rating on the company. The average 12-month target price among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $12.86.

WU has been the topic of a number of research reports. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price objective on Western Union from $16.00 to $14.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. UBS Group reduced their price objective on shares of Western Union from $13.50 to $12.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on Western Union from $14.00 to $12.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, August 20th. Finally, StockNews.com raised Western Union from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Western Union

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Quarry LP increased its position 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 acquiring an additional 895 shares during the period. National Bank of Canada FI lifted its stake in shares of Western Union by 1.1% in the second quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 80,813 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $979,000 after buying an additional 896 shares during the period. Dakota Wealth Management grew its position in Western Union by 1.8% during the second quarter. Dakota Wealth Management now owns 56,066 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $685,000 after buying an additional 979 shares in the last quarter. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Western Union by 31.1% during 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 acquiring an additional 1,024 shares during the period. Finally, Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. lifted its position in shares of Western Union by 4.2% in the 2nd quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 27,050 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $331,000 after acquiring an additional 1,091 shares during the period. 91.81% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Western Union Trading Up 1.8 %

Shares of NYSE WU opened at $11.06 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.74 billion, a PE ratio of 5.67, a PEG ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 0.87. Western Union has a one year low of $10.51 and a one year high of $14.19. The company has a current ratio of 1.10, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.96. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $11.38 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $12.02.

Western Union (NYSE:WU) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The credit services provider reported $0.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.44 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $1.04 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.03 billion. Western Union had a net margin of 16.07% and a return on equity of 120.39%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.43 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Western Union will post 1.77 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.