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

The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU)’s share price reached a new 52-week low on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $10.19 and last traded at $10.30, with a volume of 552896 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $10.40.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have commented on WU shares. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Western Union from $11.00 to $10.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, December 13th. StockNews.com raised shares of Western Union from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price target on shares of Western Union from $13.00 to $12.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Finally, UBS Group decreased their price target on shares of Western Union from $13.50 to $12.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and nine have assigned a hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Western Union currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $12.63.

Western Union Stock Performance

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 company’s fifty day moving average is $10.72 and its 200 day moving average is $11.44. The company has a market cap of $3.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 5.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 0.85.

Western Union (NYSE:WU) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The credit services provider reported $0.46 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.44 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $1.04 billion for 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 firm’s quarterly revenue was down 5.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.43 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that The Western Union Company will post 1.77 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Western Union Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 23rd were issued a $0.235 dividend. This represents a $0.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 9.10%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 23rd. Western Union’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 48.21%.

Western Union announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase program on Friday, December 13th that permits the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the credit services provider to buy up to 27.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are often an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Western Union

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in WU. Quarry LP lifted its position in shares of Western Union by 52.9% in the 2nd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 2,588 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 895 shares during the period. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in Western Union by 31.1% during the 2nd 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. Pacer Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in Western Union by 2.2% in the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 50,387 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $534,000 after buying an additional 1,072 shares during the last quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue raised its holdings in Western Union by 0.5% in 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 buying an additional 1,205 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Tidal Investments LLC raised its holdings in Western Union by 1.4% in the third 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 during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 91.81% of the company’s stock.

About Western Union

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.