WBI Investments LLC Boosts Holdings in The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU)

WBI Investments LLC lifted its stake in The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU) by 73.9% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 52,279 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 22,216 shares during the period. WBI Investments LLC’s holdings in Western Union were worth $731,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of WU. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Western Union in the 4th quarter worth about $27,925,000. Allianz Asset Management GmbH lifted its position in Western Union by 27.9% during the 4th quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 7,460,960 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $88,935,000 after acquiring an additional 1,627,822 shares during the period. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC lifted its position in Western Union by 351.3% during the 4th quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 959,162 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $11,434,000 after acquiring an additional 746,625 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in Western Union by 18.9% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 4,543,650 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $54,161,000 after acquiring an additional 721,331 shares during the period. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its position in Western Union by 189.2% during the 4th quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 772,015 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $9,202,000 after acquiring an additional 505,094 shares during the period. 91.81% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Western Union Stock Performance

Shares of WU stock traded up $0.12 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $12.51. The company had a trading volume of 1,943,433 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,987,614. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $12.71 and a 200-day moving average price of $12.85. The Western Union Company has a one year low of $10.92 and a one year high of $14.19. The firm has a market cap of $4.23 billion, a PE ratio of 7.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.78 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.38, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a current ratio of 1.01.

Western Union (NYSE:WU) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The credit services provider reported $0.45 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.40 by $0.05. Western Union had a net margin of 14.12% and a return on equity of 120.76%. The firm had revenue of $1.05 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.01 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.43 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that The Western Union Company will post 1.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Western Union Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 28th. Investors of record on Friday, June 14th were given a dividend of $0.235 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 14th. This represents a $0.94 annualized dividend and a yield of 7.51%. Western Union’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 55.62%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have issued reports on WU. Monness Crespi & Hardt began coverage on shares of Western Union in a report on Wednesday, March 20th. They issued a “neutral” rating for the company. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on shares of Western Union from $14.00 to $15.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Western Union from $13.00 to $14.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and nine have given a hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $13.61.

Western Union 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.