Western Union (NYSE:WU) Reaches New 1-Year Low – Here’s What Happened

The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU) shares hit a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as low as $10.19 and last traded at $10.37, with a volume of 3322931 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $10.27.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WU has been the subject of several research reports. Barclays lowered their target price on Western Union from $11.00 to $10.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, December 13th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut 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. StockNews.com raised Western Union from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. Finally, UBS Group decreased their price target on shares of Western Union from $13.50 to $12.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and nine have issued a hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $12.63.

Western Union Stock Up 0.7 %

The company has a quick ratio of 1.10, a current ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.96. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 5.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 0.85. The business’s 50-day moving average is $10.74 and its two-hundred day moving average is $11.48.

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

Western Union Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 23rd were given a dividend of $0.235 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 23rd. This represents a $0.94 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 8.93%. Western Union’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 48.21%.

Western Union announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback program on Friday, December 13th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the credit services provider to purchase up to 27.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Quarry LP raised its stake in Western Union by 52.9% during the 2nd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 2,588 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 895 shares during the last quarter. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Western Union by 31.1% in 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 in the last quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue increased its stake in shares of Western Union by 0.5% during the third quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 238,876 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $2,849,000 after acquiring an additional 1,205 shares during the period. Tidal Investments LLC raised its stake in shares of Western Union by 1.4% during the 3rd quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 88,410 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $1,055,000 after buying an additional 1,230 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Plato Investment Management Ltd increased its stake in Western Union by 12.9% in the 3rd quarter. Plato Investment Management Ltd now owns 13,177 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $157,000 after purchasing an additional 1,508 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.81% of the company’s stock.

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.