Western Union (NYSE:WU) Shares Gap Down Following Analyst Downgrade

The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU)’s share price gapped down before the market opened on Thursday after Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price target on the stock from $14.00 to $13.00. The stock had previously closed at $10.11, but opened at $9.77. Royal Bank of Canada currently has a sector perform rating on the stock. Western Union shares last traded at $9.96, with a volume of 1,785,756 shares trading hands.

Several other research analysts have also commented on the company. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on Western Union from $10.00 to $9.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Monness Crespi & Hardt downgraded Western Union from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $7.50 target price on the stock. in a research report on Thursday. Susquehanna decreased their price target on Western Union from $12.00 to $11.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. JMP Securities reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of Western Union in a research note on Thursday. Finally, UBS Group reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $10.50 target price (down previously from $11.00) on shares of Western Union in a research note on Thursday. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and seven have issued a hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $10.78.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Western Union

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. R Squared Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Western Union during the fourth quarter worth approximately $25,000. Independence Bank of Kentucky bought a new position in Western Union in the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,000. McIlrath & Eck LLC increased its holdings in Western Union by 1,487.6% during the 4th quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC now owns 3,080 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 2,886 shares during the period. UMB Bank n.a. lifted its holdings in shares of Western Union by 80.2% in the 1st quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 3,264 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 1,453 shares during the period. Finally, Huntington National Bank grew its position in shares of Western Union by 662.7% during the 4th quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 3,722 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 3,234 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 91.81% of the company’s stock.

Western Union Stock Down 0.4 %

The company has a current ratio of 1.20, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.04. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $10.41 and a 200-day moving average price of $10.67. The firm has a market cap of $3.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 3.71, a P/E/G ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 0.69.

Western Union (NYSE:WU) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The credit services provider reported $0.41 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.40 by $0.01. Western Union had a net margin of 22.19% and a return on equity of 96.90%. The business had revenue of $983.60 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.01 billion. On average, equities analysts forecast that The Western Union Company will post 1.79 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Western Union Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 17th were given a dividend of $0.235 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 17th. This represents a $0.94 annualized dividend and a yield of 9.27%. Western Union’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 34.43%.

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.