GAMMA Investing LLC Buys 38,916 Shares of The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU)

GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in shares of The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU - Free Report) by 2,948.2% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 40,236 shares of the credit services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 38,916 shares during the quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC's holdings in Western Union were worth $426,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the business. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its position in Western Union by 69.8% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 111,978 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $1,187,000 after acquiring an additional 46,021 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its stake in shares of Western Union by 93.5% during the 4th quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 83,431 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $884,000 after purchasing an additional 40,310 shares during the last quarter. Siemens Fonds Invest GmbH raised its holdings in shares of Western Union by 375.9% in the 4th quarter. Siemens Fonds Invest GmbH now owns 57,324 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $608,000 after purchasing an additional 45,278 shares during the period. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH purchased a new position in Western Union in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $6,228,000. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group Inc. bought a new position in Western Union during the fourth quarter valued at $144,000. 91.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

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

Western Union Price Performance

Shares of WU stock traded up $0.03 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $8.47. The stock had a trading volume of 13,007,668 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,423,991. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $9.56 and its 200 day simple moving average is $10.22. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.80 billion, a PE ratio of 3.16, a PEG ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 0.68. The Western Union Company has a 12 month low of $8.40 and a 12 month high of $13.12. The company has a current ratio of 1.15, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.97.

Western Union (NYSE:WU - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The credit services provider reported $0.41 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.40 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $983.60 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.01 billion. Western Union had a net margin of 22.08% and a return on equity of 77.19%. The business's quarterly revenue was down 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.45 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that The Western Union Company will post 1.79 EPS for the current year.

Western Union Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 16th will be paid a $0.235 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 16th. This represents a $0.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 11.10%. Western Union's dividend payout ratio is currently 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.