Morgan Stanley Has Lowered Expectations for Western Union (NYSE:WU) Stock Price

Key Points

• Morgan Stanley reduced Western Union's price target from $9.00 to $7.00, indicating a potential downside of 15.81% from the current stock price.
• UBS Group and Susquehanna also lowered their price targets to $8.50 and $9.00, respectively, reflecting a generally negative sentiment among analysts.
• Western Union's stock has seen a 3.8% decline in quarterly revenue compared to the previous year, with earnings per share missing estimates by $0.02.

Western Union (NYSE:WU - Free Report) had its price objective cut by Morgan Stanley from $9.00 to $7.00 in a report published on Tuesday morning, Marketbeat Ratings reports. They currently have an underweight rating on the credit services provider's stock.

Other analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. Susquehanna reiterated a "neutral" rating and set a $9.00 price target (down previously from $11.00) on shares of Western Union in a research note on Tuesday. Oppenheimer started coverage on Western Union in a report on Monday, June 2nd. They issued a "market perform" rating for the company. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their price objective on Western Union from $14.00 to $13.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price objective on Western Union from $11.00 to $10.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft started coverage on Western Union in a report on Thursday, July 17th. They issued a "hold" rating and a $9.00 price objective for the company. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eight have given a hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $8.61.

Western Union Stock Performance

Western Union stock traded down $0.01 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $8.05. 1,842,705 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 7,201,001. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.11, a current ratio of 1.15 and a quick ratio of 1.15. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $8.71 and its 200-day moving average price is $9.75. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 3.04, a P/E/G ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.65. Western Union has a 1 year low of $7.98 and a 1 year high of $12.40.

Western Union (NYSE:WU - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 28th. The credit services provider reported $0.42 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.44 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $1.03 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.04 billion. Western Union had a net margin of 21.83% and a return on equity of 66.11%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 3.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.44 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that Western Union will post 1.79 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Western Union Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 30th. Investors of record on Monday, June 16th were issued a $0.235 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 16th. This represents a $0.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 11.7%. Western Union's dividend payout ratio is presently 35.61%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Western Union

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. SG Americas Securities LLC acquired a new position in Western Union in the 1st quarter worth about $1,018,000. Integrated Advisors Network LLC acquired a new position in Western Union in the 1st quarter worth about $149,000. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in Western Union by 45.5% in the 1st quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 68,622 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $726,000 after purchasing an additional 21,456 shares during the period. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC raised its holdings in shares of Western Union by 10.9% during the fourth quarter. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC now owns 68,237 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $723,000 after acquiring an additional 6,727 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in shares of Western Union by 188.1% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,803 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 2,483 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.81% of the company's stock.

Western Union Company 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.