Citigroup Lowers Western Union (NYSE:WU) Price Target to $8.50

Western Union (NYSE:WU) had its target price decreased by research analysts at Citigroup from $9.50 to $8.50 in a report released on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a “neutral” rating on the credit services provider’s stock. Citigroup’s price target suggests a potential downside of 4.33% from the stock’s current price.

Several other analysts have also recently weighed in on the stock. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Western Union from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a report on Friday, June 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of Western Union from $9.00 to $8.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, July 13th. Finally, Barclays began coverage on shares of Western Union in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. They issued an “underweight” rating and a $7.00 price objective on the stock. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and six have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $8.45.

Western Union Trading Up 6.5%

NYSE:WU opened at $8.88 on Friday. Western Union has a 12-month low of $6.91 and a 12-month high of $10.35. The firm has a market cap of $2.78 billion, a PE ratio of 6.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 0.46. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.88. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $7.88 and a 200 day moving average price of $8.84.

Western Union (NYSE:WU) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 24th. The credit services provider reported $0.25 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.40 by ($0.15). The company had revenue of $963.50 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.06 billion. Western Union had a return on equity of 55.94% and a net margin of 10.88%.Western Union’s revenue for the quarter was down .1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.41 EPS. Western Union has set its FY 2026 guidance at 1.750-1.850 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Western Union will post 1.75 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other Western Union news, insider Benjamin Carlton Adams sold 19,924 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $9.23, for a total value of $183,898.52. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 234,689 shares in the company, valued at $2,166,179.47. This represents a 7.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Giovanni Angelini sold 6,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $9.47, for a total transaction of $56,820.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 311,292 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,947,935.24. The trade was a 1.89% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. 3.29% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of WU. SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its position in Western Union by 11,759.8% in the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 7,954,045 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $74,052,000 after acquiring an additional 7,886,978 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Western Union by 401.4% during the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 7,604,026 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $70,793,000 after purchasing an additional 6,087,613 shares during the last quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd grew its holdings in shares of Western Union by 821.1% during the second quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 4,170,343 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $35,114,000 after purchasing an additional 3,717,589 shares during the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP increased its position in shares of Western Union by 3,370.2% during the fourth quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 3,740,849 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $34,827,000 after purchasing an additional 3,633,049 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UBS Group AG increased its position in shares of Western Union by 128.4% during the third quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 4,900,542 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $39,155,000 after purchasing an additional 2,754,827 shares in the last quarter. 91.81% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Western Union Company Profile

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.