Western Union (NYSE:WU) Upgraded at Monness Crespi & Hardt

Monness Crespi & Hardt upgraded shares of Western Union (NYSE:WU) from a sell rating to a neutral rating in a research report report published on Wednesday morning, Marketbeat.com reports.

WU has been the subject of a number of other research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on shares of Western Union from $9.00 to $8.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, July 13th. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and set a $8.00 price objective on shares of Western Union in a research note on Friday, October 2nd. Barclays reduced their target price on Western Union from $7.00 to $6.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, July 31st. Citigroup reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Western Union in a report on Thursday, September 24th. Finally, New Street Research reissued a “reduce” rating on shares of Western Union in a research note on Thursday, August 13th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and seven have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $7.18.

Western Union Stock Performance

Shares of WU stock opened at $6.18 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $1.93 billion, a PE ratio of 4.21 and a beta of 0.51. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $6.70 and a 200-day moving average of $7.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.95, a current ratio of 1.12 and a quick ratio of 1.12. Western Union has a one year low of $5.87 and a one year high of $10.35.

Western Union (NYSE:WU) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 30th. The credit services provider reported $0.31 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.42 by ($0.11). The firm had revenue of $1.01 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.02 billion. Western Union had a return on equity of 50.89% and a net margin of 9.79%. The firm’s revenue was down 1.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.37 EPS. Western Union has set its FY 2026 guidance at 1.250-1.350 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Western Union will post 1.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Western Union Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, September 16th were paid a $0.2350 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, September 16th. This represents a $0.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 15.2%. Western Union’s payout ratio is presently 76.42%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. BlackRock Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Western Union during the second quarter worth $241,806,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in Western Union by 15.1% in the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 7,902,175 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $68,989,000 after acquiring an additional 1,039,604 shares in the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP lifted its position in Western Union by 19.4% in the 1st quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 3,966,409 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $34,627,000 after acquiring an additional 645,451 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE lifted its position in Western Union by 43.5% in the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 3,838,382 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $33,509,000 after acquiring an additional 1,163,577 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its stake in Western Union by 0.4% in the 1st quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 2,789,861 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $24,355,000 after purchasing an additional 12,295 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.81% of the company’s stock.

Western Union Company Profile

Western Union Company (NYSE: WU) is a global provider of money movement and payment services. The company enables consumers and businesses to send and receive money through digital platforms, retail locations and account-based services. Its offerings include domestic and international money transfers, bill payments, money orders and related payment solutions.

Western Union serves customers across a broad international network spanning more than 200 countries and territories. Consumers can access its services through the Western Union website and mobile application, as well as through a network of agent locations and other retail partners.