The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU) Shares Acquired by Bridgewater Associates LP

Bridgewater Associates LP increased its position in shares of The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU - Free Report) by 35.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 507,633 shares of the credit services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 134,223 shares during the quarter. Bridgewater Associates LP owned approximately 0.15% of Western Union worth $5,381,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of WU. Guggenheim Capital LLC grew its position in shares of Western Union by 6.7% in the fourth quarter. Guggenheim Capital LLC now owns 248,820 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $2,637,000 after purchasing an additional 15,560 shares during the period. Icon Advisers Inc. Co. grew its position in shares of Western Union by 20.9% in the fourth quarter. Icon Advisers Inc. Co. now owns 182,500 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $1,934,000 after purchasing an additional 31,600 shares during the period. Mariner LLC grew its position in shares of Western Union by 96.0% in the fourth quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 51,027 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $541,000 after purchasing an additional 24,993 shares during the period. BTG Pactual Asset Management US LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Western Union in the fourth quarter valued at $114,000. Finally, Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. grew its position in shares of Western Union by 248.8% in the fourth quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 265,135 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $2,810,000 after purchasing an additional 189,125 shares during the period. 91.81% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Western Union Stock Up 0.8 %

Shares of NYSE WU traded up $0.08 on Wednesday, hitting $10.08. The company had a trading volume of 2,127,824 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,152,091. The Western Union Company has a 12-month low of $9.00 and a 12-month high of $13.93. The business has a 50 day moving average of $10.43 and a two-hundred day moving average of $10.69. The company has a quick ratio of 1.10, a current ratio of 1.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.04. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 3.69, a PEG ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 0.69.

Western Union (NYSE:WU - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The credit services provider reported $0.40 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.42 by ($0.02). Western Union had a return on equity of 96.90% and a net margin of 22.19%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that The Western Union Company will post 1.79 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Western Union Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Monday, March 17th were paid a $0.235 dividend. This represents a $0.94 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 9.33%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 17th. Western Union's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 34.43%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on WU shares. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a "sector perform" rating and issued a $14.00 price objective on shares of Western Union in a research report on Thursday, April 3rd. Susquehanna lowered their price target on Western Union from $13.00 to $12.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on Western Union from $10.00 to $9.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, JMP Securities reissued a "market perform" rating on shares of Western Union in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eight have assigned a hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Western Union has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $12.11.

About Western Union

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.