BNP Paribas Financial Markets Increases Stock Holdings in The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU)

BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its position in shares of The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU - Free Report) by 80.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 261,386 shares of the credit services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 116,653 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets owned about 0.08% of Western Union worth $2,771,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in WU. Barclays PLC raised its position in shares of Western Union by 9.2% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 608,454 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $7,257,000 after purchasing an additional 51,327 shares during the period. Oak Thistle LLC acquired a new stake in Western Union in the fourth quarter valued at $476,000. Foresight Capital Management Advisors Inc. bought a new position in Western Union during the fourth quarter worth about $922,000. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in Western Union by 9.6% in the 4th quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. now owns 118,134 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $1,252,000 after acquiring an additional 10,306 shares during the period. Finally, Merit Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Western Union during the 4th quarter worth about $126,000. 91.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Western Union Trading Down 0.5%

Shares of Western Union stock traded down $0.05 on Wednesday, reaching $9.84. 380,624 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,023,191. The firm's 50-day moving average is $10.05 and its two-hundred day moving average is $10.47. The company has a market capitalization of $3.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 3.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 0.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.04, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a current ratio of 1.20. The Western Union Company has a 52 week low of $9.00 and a 52 week high of $13.12.

Western Union (NYSE:WU - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The credit services provider reported $0.41 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.40 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $983.60 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.01 billion. Western Union had a net margin of 22.19% and a return on equity of 96.90%. The business's quarterly revenue was down 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.45 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that The Western Union Company will post 1.79 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Western Union Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 16th will be issued a dividend of $0.235 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 16th. This represents a $0.94 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 9.56%. Western Union's dividend payout ratio is 35.07%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently commented on WU. Monness Crespi & Hardt cut shares of Western Union from a "neutral" rating to a "sell" rating and set a $7.50 target price on the stock. in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Susquehanna decreased their target price on shares of Western Union from $12.00 to $11.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price target on shares of Western Union from $12.00 to $11.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. UBS Group restated a "neutral" rating and set a $10.50 target price (down from $11.00) on shares of Western Union in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on Western Union from $10.00 to $9.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and seven have given a hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Western Union presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $10.78.

About Western Union

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.