Aquatic Capital Management LLC Acquires 519,427 Shares of The Western Union Company $WU

Aquatic Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU) by 143.1% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 882,399 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 519,427 shares during the quarter. Aquatic Capital Management LLC owned about 0.28% of Western Union worth $7,050,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Schroder Investment Management Group increased its holdings in shares of Western Union by 48.5% in the second quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 13,240,037 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $111,481,000 after purchasing an additional 4,321,604 shares during the last quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd boosted its holdings in shares of Western Union by 821.1% during the 2nd quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 4,170,343 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $35,114,000 after buying an additional 3,717,589 shares during the period. Discerene Group LP grew its stake in Western Union by 55.1% in 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 last quarter. Meridiem Capital Partners LP grew its stake in Western Union by 190.7% in the 3rd quarter. Meridiem Capital Partners LP now owns 4,545,827 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $36,321,000 after buying an additional 2,982,044 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UBS Group AG raised its holdings in Western Union by 128.4% in the 3rd quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 4,900,542 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $39,155,000 after acquiring an additional 2,754,827 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.81% of the company’s stock.

Western Union Stock Down 2.0%

Shares of WU opened at $9.54 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 1.19, a quick ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.00. The Western Union Company has a 12 month low of $7.85 and a 12 month high of $10.90. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $9.57 and its 200-day moving average is $9.03. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.99 billion, a PE ratio of 6.27, a P/E/G ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 0.51.

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 analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.43 by $0.02. Western Union had a return on equity of 62.01% and a net margin of 12.33%.The business had revenue of $1 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.04 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.40 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Western Union has set its FY 2026 guidance at 1.750-1.850 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that The Western Union Company will post 1.79 EPS for the current year.

Western Union Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 17th will be given a $0.235 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 17th. This represents a $0.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 9.9%. Western Union’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 61.84%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Western Union in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Cantor Fitzgerald raised Western Union to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 27th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on Western Union from $9.00 to $10.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 2nd. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and five have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average price target 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.