The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU) Holdings Boosted by UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC

UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its holdings in shares of The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU - Free Report) by 4.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,707,798 shares of the credit services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 76,577 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC owned 0.51% of Western Union worth $18,103,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in Western Union by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 38,055,661 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $403,390,000 after purchasing an additional 317,711 shares during the period. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its position in Western Union by 18.0% during the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 28,983,265 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $307,224,000 after purchasing an additional 4,426,126 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in Western Union by 4.6% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 12,489,079 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $132,384,000 after purchasing an additional 549,931 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Western Union by 39.0% during the 4th quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 11,206,431 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $118,788,000 after purchasing an additional 3,146,395 shares during the period. Finally, Schroder Investment Management Group boosted its position in Western Union by 32.1% during the 4th quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 9,021,308 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $95,626,000 after purchasing an additional 2,194,403 shares during the period. 91.81% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WU has been the subject of a number of research reports. Susquehanna decreased their price target on shares of Western Union from $12.00 to $11.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on shares of Western Union from $10.00 to $9.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. UBS Group reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $10.50 price objective (down previously from $11.00) on shares of Western Union in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price objective on shares of Western Union from $12.00 to $11.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Finally, Monness Crespi & Hardt lowered shares of Western Union from a "neutral" rating to a "sell" rating and set a $7.50 price objective on the stock. in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and seven have given a hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Western Union currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $10.78.

Western Union Stock Performance

NYSE WU traded down $0.05 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $9.27. The company's stock had a trading volume of 7,352,026 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,154,192. 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 business has a 50-day simple moving average of $9.86 and a 200 day simple moving average of $10.40. The Western Union Company has a 52 week low of $9.00 and a 52 week high of $13.12. The stock has a market cap of $3.06 billion, a PE ratio of 3.40, a PEG ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 0.72.

Western Union (NYSE:WU - Get Free Report) last issued 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 22.19% and a return on equity of 96.90%. The firm had revenue of $983.60 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.01 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.45 earnings per share. Western Union's revenue was down 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict 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 declared 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 is Monday, June 16th. This represents a $0.94 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 10.14%. Western Union's payout ratio is currently 35.07%.

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.