Wellington Management Group LLP Increases Stake in The Western Union Company $WU

Key Points

• Wellington Management Group LLP increased its stake in The Western Union Company by 29.9%, holding 145,513 shares valued at approximately $1.54 million.
• Analysts have issued a new average target price of $8.61 for Western Union, with several brokerages maintaining a "hold" or "neutral" rating.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.235 per share, indicating an annualized dividend yield of 10.8%.

Wellington Management Group LLP raised its position in The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU - Free Report) by 29.9% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 145,513 shares of the credit services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 33,535 shares during the quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP's holdings in Western Union were worth $1,540,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of WU. McIlrath & Eck LLC increased its position in shares of Western Union by 1,487.6% during the 4th quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC now owns 3,080 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 2,886 shares during the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. grew its position in 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 buying an additional 1,453 shares during the period. MCF Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Western Union by 464.3% during the first quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 3,397 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 2,795 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in Western Union by 188.1% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,803 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 2,483 shares during the period. Finally, Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in Western Union in the first quarter worth approximately $96,000. 91.81% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Western Union

In other Western Union news, CEO Devin Mcgranahan purchased 176,470 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 21st. The shares were bought at an average price of $8.49 per share, with a total value of $1,498,230.30. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer directly owned 913,125 shares in the company, valued at $7,752,431.25. This trade represents a 23.96% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Matthew Cagwin acquired 17,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, August 18th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $8.36 per share, with a total value of $146,300.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief financial officer directly owned 225,611 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,886,107.96. This represents a 8.41% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 1.58% of the company's stock.

Western Union Price Performance

WU stock traded down $0.01 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $8.72. The company had a trading volume of 3,484,838 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,455,906. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $8.40 and a 200 day moving average price of $9.41. The Western Union Company has a 12-month low of $7.89 and a 12-month high of $12.40. The company has a market capitalization of $2.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 3.30, a P/E/G ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 0.64. The company has a quick ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.11.

Western Union (NYSE:WU - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Monday, July 28th. The credit services provider reported $0.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.44 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $1.03 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.04 billion. Western Union had a return on equity of 66.11% and a net margin of 21.83%.The company's revenue for the quarter was down 3.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.44 earnings per share. Western Union has set its FY 2025 guidance at 1.650-1.750 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that The Western Union Company will post 1.79 earnings per share for the current year.

Western Union Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 16th will be given a $0.235 dividend. This represents a $0.94 annualized dividend and a yield of 10.8%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 16th. Western Union's payout ratio is currently 35.61%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on WU shares. Oppenheimer started coverage on shares of Western Union in a research report on Monday, June 2nd. They set a "market perform" rating for the company. Monness Crespi & Hardt lowered their target price on Western Union from $7.50 to $7.00 and set a "sell" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, July 29th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on Western Union from $9.00 to $7.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, July 29th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price objective on Western Union from $11.00 to $10.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, July 29th. Finally, UBS Group cut their price objective on Western Union from $10.50 to $8.50 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, July 29th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and five have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and an average target price of $8.61.

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.