Western Union (NYSE:WU) Reaches New 1-Year Low – What’s Next?

by · The Markets Daily

The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU – Get Free Report) shares reached a new 52-week low on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $10.69 and last traded at $10.72, with a volume of 2762128 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $10.84.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on WU shares. StockNews.com raised shares of Western Union from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Citigroup reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $13.00 price target on shares of Western Union in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price objective on Western Union from $16.00 to $14.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of Western Union from $14.00 to $12.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, August 20th. Finally, UBS Group dropped their price target on shares of Western Union from $13.50 to $12.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eight have issued a hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Western Union presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $12.86.

Check Out Our Latest Stock Report on WU

Western Union Stock Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 1.10, a current ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.96. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $11.69 and its 200 day moving average price is $12.24. The company has a market cap of $3.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 5.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 0.87.

Western Union (NYSE:WU – Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The credit services provider reported $0.46 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.44 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $1.04 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.03 billion. Western Union had a net margin of 16.07% and a return on equity of 120.39%. The business’s revenue was down 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.43 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that The Western Union Company will post 1.77 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Western Union

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Quarry LP grew its position in Western Union by 52.9% during the second quarter. Quarry LP now owns 2,588 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 895 shares in the last quarter. LRI Investments LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Western Union during the 1st quarter worth approximately $37,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. grew its holdings in shares of Western Union by 89.3% during the 2nd 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 increased its position in shares of Western Union by 59.9% during the first quarter. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,292 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 1,233 shares during the period. Finally, Tompkins Financial Corp acquired a new position in shares of Western Union in the third quarter valued at $60,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.81% of the company’s stock.

About Western Union

(Get Free Report)

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.

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