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

The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU) has earned an average rating of “Reduce” from the fourteen research firms that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation and ten have issued a hold recommendation on the company. The average 12 month price target among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $8.70.

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on WU shares. Weiss Ratings raised Western Union from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Western Union from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 7th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their target price on shares of Western Union from $10.00 to $9.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 1st. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Western Union from $8.50 to $9.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, November 10th. Finally, Susquehanna boosted their price target on shares of Western Union from $9.00 to $10.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, November 10th.

Western Union Trading Up 1.5%

WU opened at $9.37 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 4.09, a P/E/G ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 0.52. The company has a current ratio of 1.12, a quick ratio of 1.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.80. Western Union has a 12 month low of $7.85 and a 12 month high of $11.94. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $8.95 and its 200 day simple moving average is $8.59.

Western Union (NYSE:WU) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 23rd. The credit services provider reported $0.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.43 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $1.02 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.03 billion. Western Union had a return on equity of 60.85% and a net margin of 18.80%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was down .3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.46 EPS. Western Union has set its FY 2025 guidance at 1.650-1.750 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Western Union will post 1.79 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Western Union Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 31st. Investors of record on Monday, December 22nd will be issued a dividend of $0.235 per share. This represents a $0.94 annualized dividend and a yield of 10.0%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 22nd. Western Union’s dividend payout ratio is presently 41.05%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Giovanni Angelini purchased 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 10th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $8.95 per share, for a total transaction of $89,500.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider directly owned 186,932 shares in the company, valued at $1,673,041.40. This trade represents a 5.65% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 1.58% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Western Union

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. IFP Advisors Inc boosted its holdings in shares of Western Union by 53.7% during the 3rd quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 8,198 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $66,000 after buying an additional 2,864 shares during the period. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd acquired a new stake in Western Union during the third quarter worth approximately $120,000. Cambria Investment Management L.P. boosted its holdings in shares of Western Union by 19.9% during the third quarter. Cambria Investment Management L.P. now owns 869,949 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $6,951,000 after acquiring an additional 144,405 shares during the period. CIBC Bancorp USA Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Western Union in the third quarter valued at approximately $164,000. Finally, WBI Investments LLC increased its stake in shares of Western Union by 49.6% during the third quarter. WBI Investments LLC now owns 155,265 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $1,241,000 after purchasing an additional 51,467 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.81% of the company’s stock.

About Western Union

Western Union Company (NYSE: WU) is a global leader in cross-border, cross-currency money movement and payments. The company enables individuals and businesses to send and receive money through a variety of channels, including its vast agent network, online platforms, and mobile applications. Core services include person-to-person money transfers, business-to-business cross-border payments, bill payment services and prepaid card programs.

Through its digital offerings, Western Union provides customers with the ability to initiate transfers via its website and mobile app, as well as track transactions in real time.