Allianz Asset Management GmbH lessened its stake in The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU - Free Report) by 46.8% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,645,227 shares of the credit services provider's stock after selling 3,209,012 shares during the quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH owned about 1.10% of Western Union worth $38,567,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.
A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. McIlrath & Eck LLC lifted its holdings in Western Union by 1,487.6% during the fourth quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC now owns 3,080 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 2,886 shares in the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. lifted its holdings 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 purchasing an additional 1,453 shares in the last quarter. Huntington National Bank lifted its holdings in shares of Western Union by 662.7% in the fourth quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 3,722 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 3,234 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Western Union by 188.1% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,803 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 2,483 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Coppell Advisory Solutions LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Western Union by 267.5% in the fourth quarter. Coppell Advisory Solutions LLC now owns 3,833 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 2,790 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 91.81% of the company's stock.
Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades
WU has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Monness Crespi & Hardt downgraded Western Union from a "neutral" rating to a "sell" rating and set a $7.50 target price on the stock. in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. JMP Securities reissued a "market perform" rating on shares of Western Union in a research 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. Oppenheimer assumed coverage on Western Union in a research report on Monday, June 2nd. They set a "market perform" rating on the stock. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their price target on Western Union from $14.00 to $13.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eight have issued a hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Western Union has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $10.33.
Read Our Latest Analysis on Western Union
Western Union Trading Down 0.8%
Western Union stock traded down $0.07 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $8.75. 7,109,383 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 8,491,996. The company has a quick ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.97. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $8.89 and its 200 day simple moving average is $9.84. The Western Union Company has a twelve month low of $7.99 and a twelve month high of $13.11. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.89 billion, a PE ratio of 3.27, a PEG ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 0.65.
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 (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.40 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $983.60 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.01 billion. Western Union had a net margin of 22.08% and a return on equity of 77.19%. The business's revenue was down 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.45 EPS. Research analysts predict that The Western Union Company will post 1.79 earnings per share for the current year.
Western Union Announces Dividend
The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 16th were given a dividend of $0.235 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 16th. This represents a $0.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 10.74%. Western Union's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 35.07%.
Western Union Company Profile
(
Free Report)
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.
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