CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co Has $3.34 Million Position in The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU)

CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co cut its holdings in shares of The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU - Free Report) by 7.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 315,794 shares of the credit services provider's stock after selling 27,157 shares during the period. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co owned about 0.09% of Western Union worth $3,343,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. R Squared Ltd bought a new position in Western Union in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Independence Bank of Kentucky acquired a new position in shares of Western Union during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Huntington National Bank boosted its holdings in shares of Western Union by 662.7% during the 4th quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 3,722 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 3,234 shares in the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB boosted its holdings in shares of Western Union by 1,734.7% during the 4th quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 4,862 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $52,000 after acquiring an additional 4,597 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sound Income Strategies LLC bought a new stake in Western Union during the 4th quarter worth $53,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.81% of the company's stock.

Western Union Trading Down 1.9 %

NYSE WU traded down $0.19 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $9.73. 1,256,860 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,816,078. The Western Union Company has a 1-year low of $9.00 and a 1-year high of $13.60. The company has a current ratio of 1.20, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.04. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $10.37 and a 200 day simple moving average of $10.63. The firm has a market cap of $3.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 3.56, a PEG ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 0.69.

Western Union (NYSE:WU - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 23rd. The credit services provider reported $0.41 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 net margin of 22.19% and a return on equity of 96.90%. Western Union's revenue for the quarter was down 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.45 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that The Western Union Company will post 1.79 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Western Union Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 17th were paid a $0.235 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 17th. This represents a $0.94 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 9.67%. Western Union's dividend payout ratio is presently 35.07%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently commented on WU. Monness Crespi & Hardt lowered Western Union from a "neutral" rating to a "sell" rating and set a $7.50 price target on the stock. in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their target price on shares of Western Union from $14.00 to $13.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 24th. JMP Securities reiterated a "market perform" rating on shares of Western Union in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Susquehanna decreased their price objective on Western Union from $12.00 to $11.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Finally, UBS Group reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $10.50 target price (down from $11.00) on shares of Western Union in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and seven have issued a hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $10.78.

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.