Western Union (NYSE:WU) Research Coverage Started at Oppenheimer

Oppenheimer began coverage on shares of Western Union (NYSE:WU) in a research report released on Monday morning, MarketBeat Ratings reports. The brokerage issued a market perform rating on the credit services provider’s stock.

Several other equities analysts have also weighed in on WU. JMP Securities restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Western Union in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Royal Bank of Canada cut their target price on Western Union from $14.00 to $13.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Susquehanna lowered their price target on Western Union from $12.00 to $11.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. UBS Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $10.50 price target (down from $11.00) on shares of Western Union in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Finally, Monness Crespi & Hardt downgraded Western Union from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $7.50 price target on the stock. in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eight have given a hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $10.78.

Western Union Price Performance

WU opened at $9.31 on Monday. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $9.79 and a 200-day moving average of $10.37. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 3.41, a PEG ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 0.72. Western Union has a 12-month low of $9.00 and a 12-month high of $13.12. The company has a quick ratio of 1.10, a current ratio of 1.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.04.

Western Union (NYSE:WU) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The credit services provider reported $0.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.40 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $983.60 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.01 billion. Western Union had a return on equity of 96.90% and a net margin of 22.19%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.45 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that Western Union will post 1.79 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Western Union Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Investors of record on Monday, June 16th will be given a $0.235 dividend. This represents a $0.94 annualized dividend and a yield of 10.10%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 16th. Western Union’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 35.07%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Western Union

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. R Squared Ltd bought a new position in shares of Western Union during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Independence Bank of Kentucky acquired a new stake in shares of Western Union in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. McIlrath & Eck LLC lifted its position in shares of Western Union by 1,487.6% in the fourth quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC now owns 3,080 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 2,886 shares during the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. lifted its position in shares of Western Union by 80.2% in the first quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 3,264 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 1,453 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MCF Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Western Union by 464.3% in the first quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 3,397 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 2,795 shares during the last quarter. 91.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.