The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU) Shares Acquired by Range Financial Group LLC

Range Financial Group LLC raised its holdings in The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU) by 828.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 93,959 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 83,835 shares during the quarter. Range Financial Group LLC’s holdings in Western Union were worth $996,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC raised its position in shares of Western Union by 42.1% during the 2nd quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 50,342 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $615,000 after purchasing an additional 14,914 shares during the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI lifted its position in shares of Western Union by 1.1% in the second quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 80,813 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $979,000 after acquiring an additional 896 shares in the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Western Union by 4.0% during the second quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,034,943 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $12,647,000 after acquiring an additional 39,739 shares during the last quarter. LSV Asset Management increased its position in Western Union by 17.7% during the 2nd quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 9,736,930 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $118,985,000 after purchasing an additional 1,462,853 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quest Partners LLC raised its stake in Western Union by 36,507.6% in the 2nd quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 33,679 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $412,000 after purchasing an additional 33,587 shares during the last quarter. 91.81% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Western Union Price Performance

Shares of Western Union stock traded down $0.01 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $10.44. 3,943,829 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,424,905. The company has a market cap of $3.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 5.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a current ratio of 1.10, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.96. The Western Union Company has a fifty-two week low of $10.37 and a fifty-two week high of $14.19. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $10.79 and a 200 day simple moving average of $11.57.

Western Union (NYSE:WU) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The credit services provider reported $0.46 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.44 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $1.04 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.03 billion. Western Union had a net margin of 16.07% and a return on equity of 120.39%. Western Union’s revenue was down 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.43 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that The Western Union Company will post 1.77 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Western Union declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback plan on Friday, December 13th that permits the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the credit services provider to reacquire up to 27.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Western Union Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 23rd were issued a $0.235 dividend. This represents a $0.94 annualized dividend and a yield of 9.00%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 23rd. Western Union’s dividend payout ratio is currently 48.21%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. StockNews.com upgraded Western Union from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of Western Union from $11.00 to $10.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price objective on shares of Western Union from $13.00 to $12.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, December 9th. Finally, UBS Group cut their price target on shares of Western Union from $13.50 to $12.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and nine have given a hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $12.63.

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.