Brokerages Set The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU) Price Target at $10.78

The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU) has been assigned an average recommendation of “Reduce” from the eleven brokerages that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and seven have given a hold rating to the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $10.78.

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Oppenheimer assumed coverage on shares of Western Union in a research report on Monday, June 2nd. They set a “market perform” rating on the stock. Susquehanna cut their price objective on Western Union from $12.00 to $11.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. JMP Securities restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Western Union in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their target price on Western Union from $14.00 to $13.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Finally, UBS Group reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $10.50 price target (down from $11.00) on shares of Western Union in a research report on Thursday, April 24th.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Western Union

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Lecap Asset Management Ltd. grew its stake in Western Union by 129.5% in the fourth quarter. Lecap Asset Management Ltd. now owns 71,855 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $762,000 after purchasing an additional 40,548 shares in the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB grew its position in shares of Western Union by 1,734.7% in the 4th quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 4,862 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $52,000 after acquiring an additional 4,597 shares in the last quarter. Savant Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Western Union in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $774,000. Kentucky Trust Co acquired a new stake in shares of Western Union during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $113,000. Finally, Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its stake in Western Union by 19.1% during the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 480,543 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $5,094,000 after purchasing an additional 76,900 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 91.81% of the company’s stock.

Western Union Price Performance

Western Union stock opened at $9.28 on Friday. 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 company has a market cap of $3.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 3.40, a PEG ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 0.68. Western Union has a 1 year low of $9.00 and a 1 year high of $13.12. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $9.69 and a 200 day moving average price of $10.32.

Western Union (NYSE:WU) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The credit services provider reported $0.41 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.40 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $983.60 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.01 billion. Western Union had a return on equity of 96.90% and a net margin of 22.19%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.45 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Western Union will post 1.79 earnings per share for the current year.

Western Union Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Investors of record on Monday, June 16th will be issued a $0.235 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 16th. This represents a $0.94 annualized dividend and a yield of 10.13%. Western Union’s dividend payout ratio is presently 35.07%.

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.