Royal Bank of Canada Reiterates “Sector Perform” Rating for Western Union (NYSE:WU)

Royal Bank of Canada reissued their sector perform rating on shares of Western Union (NYSE:WU) in a report released on Thursday,Benzinga reports. Royal Bank of Canada currently has a $14.00 target price on the credit services provider’s stock.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued research reports about the stock. Barclays reduced their price objective on shares of Western Union from $11.00 to $10.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, December 13th. JMP Securities reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Western Union in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their target price on Western Union from $13.00 to $12.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, December 9th. Susquehanna cut their target price on Western Union from $13.00 to $12.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on Western Union from $10.00 to $9.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eight have given a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $12.11.

Western Union Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:WU opened at $10.50 on Thursday. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $10.65 and its two-hundred day moving average is $10.91. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 3.84, a PEG ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 0.79. The company has a current ratio of 1.20, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.04. Western Union has a 52 week low of $10.04 and a 52 week high of $13.93.

Western Union (NYSE:WU) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The credit services provider reported $0.40 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.42 by ($0.02). Western Union had a net margin of 22.19% and a return on equity of 96.90%. Analysts anticipate that Western Union will post 1.79 earnings per share for the current year.

Western Union announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase plan on Friday, December 13th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the credit services provider to repurchase up to 27.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Western Union Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 17th were paid a dividend of $0.235 per share. This represents a $0.94 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 8.96%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 17th. Western Union’s dividend payout ratio is presently 34.43%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Western Union

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its holdings in Western Union by 18.0% during the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 28,983,265 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $307,224,000 after buying an additional 4,426,126 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. increased its position in shares of Western Union by 202.9% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 5,661,732 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $60,014,000 after acquiring an additional 3,792,683 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Western Union by 39.0% during the fourth quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 11,206,431 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $118,788,000 after acquiring an additional 3,146,395 shares during the period. Brickwood Asset Management LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Western Union in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $31,177,000. Finally, Schroder Investment Management Group boosted its stake in Western Union by 32.1% in the 4th quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 9,021,308 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $95,626,000 after purchasing an additional 2,194,403 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.81% of the company’s stock.

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.