Western Union (NYSE:WU) Price Target Lowered to $12.00 at JPMorgan Chase & Co.

Western Union (NYSE:WU) had its price target reduced by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $14.00 to $12.00 in a research note released on Tuesday, Benzinga reports. They currently have an underweight rating on the credit services provider’s stock.

WU has been the subject of a number of other reports. Citigroup reaffirmed a neutral rating and issued a $13.00 price target on shares of Western Union in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. Evercore ISI upped their target price on shares of Western Union from $14.00 to $15.00 and gave the company an in-line rating in a research note on Thursday, April 25th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Western Union from a sell rating to a hold rating in a report on Tuesday, August 13th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price target on shares of Western Union from $16.00 to $14.00 and set a sector perform rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and seven have assigned a hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Western Union has an average rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $13.14.

Western Union Price Performance

Shares of WU stock opened at $11.66 on Tuesday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $12.18 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $12.84. The stock has a market cap of $3.94 billion, a PE ratio of 6.90, a PEG ratio of 1.77 and a beta of 0.85. Western Union has a 52-week low of $10.92 and a 52-week high of $14.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.98, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a current ratio of 1.05.

Western Union (NYSE:WU) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The credit services provider reported $0.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.45 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $1.07 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.06 billion. Western Union had a return on equity of 123.71% and a net margin of 13.64%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 8.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.51 earnings per share. As a group, analysts forecast that Western Union will post 1.77 EPS for the current year.

Western Union Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 16th will be given a dividend of $0.235 per share. This represents a $0.94 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 8.07%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 16th. Western Union’s dividend payout ratio is 55.62%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Western Union

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in WU. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its stake in shares of Western Union by 7,569.8% in the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 13,905,891 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $194,405,000 after purchasing an additional 13,724,584 shares during the period. LSV Asset Management grew its holdings in shares of Western Union by 17.7% during the second quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 9,736,930 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $118,985,000 after buying an additional 1,462,853 shares in the last quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH raised its position in Western Union by 27.9% in 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 buying an additional 1,627,822 shares during the last quarter. Discerene Group LP lifted its stake in Western Union by 11.9% in the 1st quarter. Discerene Group LP now owns 6,682,192 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $93,417,000 after acquiring an additional 710,873 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted 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 worth $54,161,000 after acquiring an additional 721,331 shares during the last quarter. 91.81% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.