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

The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU) has received a consensus recommendation of “Reduce” from the eleven ratings firms that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and seven have issued a hold rating on the company. The average 12-month price target among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $10.33.

WU has been the subject of several research reports. Oppenheimer initiated coverage on shares of Western Union in a research report on Monday, June 2nd. They set a “market perform” rating for the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price target on shares of Western Union from $12.00 to $11.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Susquehanna reduced their price target on shares of Western Union from $12.00 to $11.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft began coverage on shares of Western Union in a research report on Thursday, July 17th. They set a “hold” rating and a $9.00 price target for the company. Finally, UBS Group reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $10.50 target price (down previously from $11.00) on shares of Western Union in a research report on Thursday, April 24th.

Western Union Stock Performance

NYSE WU opened at $8.59 on Monday. Western Union has a 1 year low of $7.99 and a 1 year high of $13.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.97, a current ratio of 1.15 and a quick ratio of 1.15. The firm has a market cap of $2.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 3.20, a PEG ratio of 1.48 and a beta of 0.65. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $8.84 and a 200-day moving average price of $9.80.

Western Union Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 16th were issued a $0.235 dividend. This represents a $0.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 10.95%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 16th. Western Union’s payout ratio is 35.07%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Western Union

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of WU. Captrust Financial Advisors raised its stake in Western Union by 4.6% in the fourth quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 22,298 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $236,000 after purchasing an additional 982 shares in the last quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue raised its stake in Western Union by 0.5% in the first quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 239,236 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $2,530,000 after purchasing an additional 1,085 shares in the last quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale raised its stake in Western Union by 0.7% in the first quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale now owns 186,822 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $1,947,000 after purchasing an additional 1,249 shares in the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in Western Union by 0.3% in the first quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 405,839 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $4,294,000 after purchasing an additional 1,262 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SummerHaven Investment Management LLC raised its stake in Western Union by 2.3% in the first quarter. SummerHaven Investment Management LLC now owns 62,824 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $665,000 after purchasing an additional 1,393 shares in the last quarter. 91.81% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.