Fred Alger Management LLC Increases Holdings in TransUnion (NYSE:TRU)

Fred Alger Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of TransUnion (NYSE:TRU - Free Report) by 15.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 88,470 shares of the business services provider's stock after buying an additional 11,944 shares during the period. Fred Alger Management LLC's holdings in TransUnion were worth $8,202,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd bought a new position in shares of TransUnion during the 4th quarter worth approximately $40,000. Huntington National Bank grew its stake in shares of TransUnion by 58.7% during the 4th quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 454 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $42,000 after acquiring an additional 168 shares in the last quarter. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC bought a new position in shares of TransUnion during the 4th quarter worth approximately $44,000. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. bought a new position in shares of TransUnion during the 4th quarter worth approximately $47,000. Finally, Mizuho Bank Ltd. bought a new position in shares of TransUnion during the 4th quarter worth approximately $47,000.

TransUnion Stock Performance

Shares of TRU traded up $5.70 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $91.81. 1,669,747 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,673,148. TransUnion has a twelve month low of $66.38 and a twelve month high of $113.17. The company has a quick ratio of 1.70, a current ratio of 1.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18. The company has a market cap of $17.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 62.88, a PEG ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.67. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $80.85 and its 200 day simple moving average is $91.21.

TransUnion (NYSE:TRU - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The business services provider reported $1.05 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.98 by $0.07. TransUnion had a return on equity of 15.85% and a net margin of 6.80%. The company had revenue of $1.10 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.07 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.92 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 7.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts expect that TransUnion will post 3.99 earnings per share for the current year.

TransUnion declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback plan on Thursday, February 13th that allows the company to repurchase $500.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the business services provider to repurchase up to 2.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

TransUnion Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 6th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 22nd will be paid a $0.115 dividend. This represents a $0.46 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.50%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 22nd. TransUnion's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 24.47%.

Insider Activity at TransUnion

In other news, EVP Venkat Achanta sold 1,821 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $95.74, for a total transaction of $174,342.54. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 105,443 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,095,112.82. The trade was a 1.70% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Steven M. Chaouki sold 1,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $82.96, for a total value of $82,960.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 76,393 shares in the company, valued at $6,337,563.28. The trade was a 1.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 4,021 shares of company stock valued at $359,761 over the last quarter. 0.22% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price target on shares of TransUnion from $125.00 to $115.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th. Barclays decreased their target price on shares of TransUnion from $105.00 to $85.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 4th. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of TransUnion from $102.00 to $104.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Bank of America began coverage on shares of TransUnion in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. They issued an "underperform" rating and a $84.00 target price for the company. Finally, Oppenheimer raised their target price on shares of TransUnion from $93.00 to $96.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, April 25th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, TransUnion presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $109.38.

About TransUnion

TransUnion operates as a global consumer credit reporting agency that provides risk and information solutions. The company operates through U.S. Markets, International, and Consumer Interactive segments. The U.S. Markets segment provides consumer reports, actionable insights, and analytic services to businesses, which uses its services to acquire new customers; assess consumer ability to pay for services; identify cross-selling opportunities; measure and manage debt portfolio risk; collect debt; verify consumer identities; and mitigate fraud risk.