Citigroup Inc. Raises Stake in The Western Union Company $WU

Citigroup Inc. lifted its stake in shares of The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU) by 46.8% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 608,511 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 194,020 shares during the period. Citigroup Inc. owned 0.19% of Western Union worth $4,862,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Schroder Investment Management Group increased its position in Western Union by 48.5% during the second quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 13,240,037 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $111,481,000 after purchasing an additional 4,321,604 shares during the last quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd grew its stake in shares of Western Union by 821.1% in the 2nd quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 4,170,343 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $35,114,000 after buying an additional 3,717,589 shares during the period. Discerene Group LP raised its position in shares of Western Union by 55.1% during the 2nd quarter. Discerene Group LP now owns 10,366,558 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $87,286,000 after buying an additional 3,684,366 shares during the period. Allianz Asset Management GmbH lifted its holdings in Western Union by 51.1% in the third quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 6,329,626 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $50,574,000 after acquiring an additional 2,140,167 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Lazard Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in Western Union by 180.3% in the second quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 2,798,728 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $23,564,000 after acquiring an additional 1,800,319 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.81% of the company’s stock.

Western Union Stock Performance

Shares of Western Union stock opened at $9.56 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 0.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.00, a current ratio of 1.19 and a quick ratio of 1.19. The business has a 50-day moving average of $9.51 and a 200 day moving average of $8.96. The Western Union Company has a 12 month low of $7.85 and a 12 month high of $11.94.

Western Union (NYSE:WU) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, February 20th. The credit services provider reported $0.45 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.43 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $1 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.04 billion. Western Union had a net margin of 12.33% and a return on equity of 62.01%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 4.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.40 earnings per share. Western Union has set its FY 2026 guidance at 1.750-1.850 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that The Western Union Company will post 1.79 earnings per share for the current year.

Western Union Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 17th will be paid a $0.235 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 17th. This represents a $0.94 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 9.8%. Western Union’s payout ratio is 61.84%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have commented on WU. Susquehanna lifted their target price on Western Union from $9.00 to $10.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, November 10th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Western Union in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on shares of Western Union from $9.00 to $10.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 2nd. Cantor Fitzgerald upgraded shares of Western Union to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 27th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Western Union from $8.50 to $9.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, November 10th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and five have given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $8.82.

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.