96,211 Shares in The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU) Acquired by SG Americas Securities LLC

SG Americas Securities LLC acquired a new position in The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm acquired 96,211 shares of the credit services provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,018,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Van ECK Associates Corp increased its stake in shares of Western Union by 19.1% in the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 480,543 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $5,094,000 after acquiring an additional 76,900 shares during the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP grew its stake in shares of Western Union by 782.7% in the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 10,010 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $103,000 after buying an additional 8,876 shares in the last quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D increased its holdings in Western Union by 17.6% in the fourth quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D now owns 195,271 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $2,070,000 after buying an additional 29,281 shares during the last quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC raised its position in Western Union by 17.0% during the fourth quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 32,761 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $341,000 after acquiring an additional 4,752 shares in the last quarter. Finally, D.A. Davidson & CO. lifted its stake in Western Union by 3.5% in the fourth quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 45,825 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $486,000 after acquiring an additional 1,565 shares during the last quarter. 91.81% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently commented on WU shares. Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their price target on shares of Western Union from $14.00 to $13.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Susquehanna lowered their target price on shares of Western Union from $12.00 to $11.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Monness Crespi & Hardt cut Western Union from a "neutral" rating to a "sell" rating and set a $7.50 price target for the company. in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Oppenheimer assumed coverage on Western Union in a research note on Monday, June 2nd. They set a "market perform" rating for the company. Finally, UBS Group reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $10.50 price objective (down from $11.00) on shares of Western Union in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eight have given a hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $10.78.

Western Union Stock Performance

NYSE WU traded up $0.03 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $8.46. The company's stock had a trading volume of 9,935,567 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,628,528. The Western Union Company has a 52 week low of $8.40 and a 52 week high of $13.11. The firm has a market cap of $2.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 3.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.30 and a beta of 0.68. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $9.61 and a 200 day moving average price of $10.25. The company has a quick ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.97.

Western Union (NYSE:WU - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The credit services provider reported $0.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.40 by $0.01. Western Union had a net margin of 22.08% and a return on equity of 77.19%. The business had revenue of $983.60 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.01 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.45 earnings per share. Western Union's revenue was down 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. 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 company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 16th will be given a dividend of $0.235 per share. This represents a $0.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 11.12%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 16th. Western Union's dividend payout ratio is presently 35.07%.

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.