Barclays Issues Pessimistic Forecast for TransUnion (NYSE:TRU) Stock Price

TransUnion (NYSE:TRU) had its price objective decreased by Barclays from $105.00 to $85.00 in a report released on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an “equal weight” rating on the business services provider’s stock. Barclays‘s price target suggests a potential upside of 19.55% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other analysts have also weighed in on the company. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their target price on TransUnion from $125.00 to $115.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of TransUnion from $130.00 to $127.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. William Blair reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of TransUnion in a report on Monday, March 24th. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of TransUnion from $102.00 to $104.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of TransUnion in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $112.54.

TransUnion Price Performance

TransUnion stock opened at $71.10 on Friday. TransUnion has a 12-month low of $66.07 and a 12-month high of $113.17. The company has a current ratio of 1.70, a quick ratio of 1.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $90.11 and a 200-day moving average price of $96.46. The firm has a market capitalization of $13.87 billion, a PE ratio of 48.70, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.70.

TransUnion (NYSE:TRU) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The business services provider reported $0.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.97 by ($0.14). The firm had revenue of $1.04 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.03 billion. TransUnion had a return on equity of 15.85% and a net margin of 6.80%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that TransUnion will post 3.99 EPS for the current year.

TransUnion declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback plan on Thursday, February 13th that authorizes the company to repurchase $500.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the business services provider to repurchase up to 2.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Transactions at TransUnion

In other TransUnion news, EVP Venkat Achanta sold 1,821 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $95.74, for a total value of $174,342.54. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 105,443 shares in the company, valued at $10,095,112.82. This trade represents a 1.70 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Steven M. Chaouki sold 1,000 shares of TransUnion stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $83.31, for a total transaction of $83,310.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 77,393 shares in the company, valued at $6,447,610.83. This represents a 1.28 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 4,021 shares of company stock valued at $372,751. Corporate insiders own 0.25% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of TransUnion

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its stake in TransUnion by 2.7% in the third quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 10,429 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,092,000 after buying an additional 274 shares during the last quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors acquired a new position in shares of TransUnion during the third quarter valued at about $892,000. Benjamin Edwards Inc. purchased a new position in shares of TransUnion in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $676,000. Hilltop Holdings Inc. acquired a new stake in TransUnion in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $357,000. Finally, HighTower Advisors LLC grew its position in TransUnion by 14.5% during the 3rd quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 6,453 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $674,000 after purchasing an additional 819 shares during the last quarter.

TransUnion Company Profile

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.