Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC Acquires 3,399 Shares of The Western Union Company $WU

Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC grew its holdings in The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU) by 5.1% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 69,894 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,399 shares during the quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC’s holdings in Western Union were worth $589,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Marshall Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in Western Union in the 2nd quarter valued at $703,000. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Western Union by 45.5% in the 1st quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 68,622 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $726,000 after purchasing an additional 21,456 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Western Union by 188.1% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,803 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 2,483 shares in the last quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Western Union during the first quarter worth about $124,000. Finally, Janney Montgomery Scott LLC boosted its position in shares of Western Union by 35.2% during the first quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 229,360 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $2,427,000 after buying an additional 59,777 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 91.81% of the company’s stock.

Western Union Price Performance

NYSE:WU opened at $8.13 on Wednesday. The Western Union Company has a 12-month low of $7.85 and a 12-month high of $11.94. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 3.08, a P/E/G ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 0.61. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $8.32 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $8.81. The company has a quick ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.11.

Western Union (NYSE:WU) last posted its earnings results on Monday, July 28th. The credit services provider reported $0.42 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.44 by ($0.02). Western Union had a return on equity of 66.11% and a net margin of 21.83%.The business had revenue of $1.03 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.04 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.44 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 3.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Western Union has set its FY 2025 guidance at 1.650-1.750 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that The Western Union Company will post 1.79 earnings per share for the current year.

Western Union Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 16th were paid a dividend of $0.235 per share. This represents a $0.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 11.6%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 16th. Western Union’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 35.61%.

Insider Transactions at Western Union

In other news, CFO Matthew Cagwin bought 17,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 18th. The shares were bought at an average price of $8.36 per share, with a total value of $146,300.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 225,611 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,886,107.96. This trade represents a 8.41% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Devin Mcgranahan bought 176,470 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 21st. The shares were purchased at an average price of $8.49 per share, for a total transaction of $1,498,230.30. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer owned 913,125 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,752,431.25. This trade represents a 23.96% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 1.58% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have commented on WU. Zacks Research upgraded Western Union from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 7th. Barclays set a $8.00 target price on shares of Western Union and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft began coverage on shares of Western Union in a research note on Thursday, July 17th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $9.00 price target on the stock. Susquehanna reduced their price objective on shares of Western Union from $11.00 to $9.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, July 29th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. set a $10.00 target price on Western Union in a research report on Tuesday, July 29th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $8.50.

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.