Pallas Capital Advisors LLC Takes $665,000 Position in The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU)

Pallas Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 62,849 shares of the credit services provider's stock, valued at approximately $665,000.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of WU. Captrust Financial Advisors boosted its stake in shares of Western Union by 4.6% during the fourth quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 22,298 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $236,000 after purchasing an additional 982 shares during the period. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its stake in shares of Western Union by 80.2% during 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 during the period. Focus Partners Wealth boosted its stake in shares of Western Union by 11.7% during the fourth quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 14,233 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $151,000 after purchasing an additional 1,493 shares during the period. 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 worth $486,000 after acquiring an additional 1,565 shares during the period. Finally, Coppell Advisory Solutions LLC lifted its stake in 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 worth $41,000 after acquiring an additional 2,790 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 91.81% of the company's stock.

Western Union Stock Down 5.3%

Shares of WU traded down $0.48 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $8.65. 13,943,640 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,316,629. The Western Union Company has a 1-year low of $8.62 and a 1-year high of $13.12. 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 company has a market capitalization of $2.86 billion, a PE ratio of 3.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 0.68. The business has a 50 day moving average of $9.65 and a 200 day moving average of $10.28.

Western Union (NYSE:WU - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 23rd. The credit services provider reported $0.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.40 by $0.01. Western Union had a net margin of 22.19% and a return on equity of 96.90%. The firm had revenue of $983.60 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.01 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.45 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that The Western Union Company will post 1.79 EPS for the current year.

Western Union Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Investors of record on Monday, June 16th will be issued a $0.235 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 16th. This represents a $0.94 annualized dividend and a yield of 10.87%. Western Union's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 35.07%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. UBS Group reaffirmed 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. Oppenheimer assumed coverage on shares of Western Union in a research note on Monday, June 2nd. They issued a "market perform" rating for the company. Susquehanna lowered their price objective on shares of Western Union from $12.00 to $11.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. JMP Securities reiterated a "market perform" rating on shares of Western Union in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Finally, Monness Crespi & Hardt downgraded shares of Western Union from a "neutral" rating to a "sell" rating and set a $7.50 target price for the company. in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eight have assigned a hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Western Union presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $10.78.

Western Union Profile

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.