Western Union (NYSE:WU) Reaches New 52-Week Low - Here's What Happened

The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU - Get Free Report) reached a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Wednesday. The company traded as low as $5.93 and last traded at $5.9750, with a volume of 7869135 shares. The stock had previously closed at $6.12.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on WU shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of Western Union from $9.00 to $8.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, July 13th. Barclays cut their price target on shares of Western Union from $7.00 to $6.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, July 31st. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Western Union from a "sell (d+)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. Wolfe Research reiterated an "underperform" rating and issued a $8.00 price objective on shares of Western Union in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Finally, Zacks Research cut shares of Western Union from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and eight have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Strong Sell" and an average price target of $7.36.

Western Union Price Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $1.86 billion, a PE ratio of 4.86 and a beta of 0.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.95, a current ratio of 1.12 and a quick ratio of 1.12. The stock's fifty day moving average is $7.09 and its 200-day moving average is $7.96.

Western Union (NYSE:WU - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 30th. The credit services provider reported $0.31 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.42 by ($0.11). Western Union had a net margin of 9.79% and a return on equity of 50.89%. The firm had revenue of $1.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.02 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.37 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was down 1.3% on a year-over-year basis. Western Union has set its FY 2026 guidance at 1.250-1.350 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that The Western Union Company will post 1.29 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Western Union Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, September 16th will be given a dividend of $0.2350 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, September 16th. This represents a $0.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 15.7%. Western Union's dividend payout ratio is currently 76.42%.

Institutional Trading of Western Union

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Miramontes Capital LLC raised its stake in shares of Western Union by 99.8% during the 2nd quarter. Miramontes Capital LLC now owns 95,436 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $735,000 after buying an additional 47,667 shares during the period. Engineers Gate Manager LP lifted its position in shares of Western Union by 467.6% during the 2nd quarter. Engineers Gate Manager LP now owns 1,699,841 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $13,089,000 after buying an additional 1,400,369 shares in the last quarter. Nykredit A S acquired a new stake in Western Union in the 2nd quarter valued at $51,000. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al acquired a new stake in Western Union in the 2nd quarter valued at $977,000. Finally, AlphaGrep UK Ltd purchased a new stake in Western Union in the 2nd quarter worth $104,000. 91.81% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Western Union

Western Union Company NYSE: WU is a global provider of money movement and payment services. The company enables consumers and businesses to send and receive money across borders and within individual markets through digital platforms, mobile applications and a network of retail agent locations.

Its services include consumer money transfers, international remittances, bill payments and money orders. Customers can typically initiate transfers online, through the Western Union app or at participating retail locations, with recipients able to collect funds in cash or receive them through eligible bank accounts, digital wallets or other payment methods, depending on the destination market.

Western Union traces its origins to 1851, when it was established as a telegraph company in the United States.

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