Western Union (NYSE:WU) Hits New 12-Month Low – Here’s Why

The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU)’s share price reached a new 52-week low during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $10.26 and last traded at $10.30, with a volume of 462717 shares. The stock had previously closed at $10.43.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

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

Western Union Stock Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $3.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 5.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 0.85. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $10.79 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $11.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.96, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a current ratio of 1.10.

Western Union (NYSE:WU) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The credit services provider reported $0.46 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.44 by $0.02. Western Union had a return on equity of 120.39% and a net margin of 16.07%. The company had revenue of $1.04 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.03 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.43 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that The Western Union Company will post 1.77 earnings per share for the current year.

Western Union Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 23rd were issued a dividend of $0.235 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 23rd. This represents a $0.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 9.07%. Western Union’s payout ratio is presently 48.21%.

Western Union announced that its board has authorized a stock buyback program on Friday, December 13th that permits the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the credit services provider to buy up to 27.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are often an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Western Union

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. True Wealth Design LLC bought a new position in shares of Western Union in the third quarter valued at about $25,000. Quarry LP raised its stake in shares of Western Union by 52.9% in the second quarter. Quarry LP now owns 2,588 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 895 shares during the last quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. lifted its position in shares of Western Union by 89.3% during the second quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 3,226 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 1,522 shares in the last quarter. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Western Union by 31.1% during the second quarter. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,316 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $53,000 after purchasing an additional 1,024 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Tompkins Financial Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Western Union in the third quarter valued at approximately $60,000. 91.81% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.