The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU) Shares Sold by New York State Teachers Retirement System

New York State Teachers Retirement System trimmed its holdings in The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU) by 0.4% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 403,993 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 1,665 shares during the period. New York State Teachers Retirement System owned 0.12% of Western Union worth $4,820,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Quarry LP raised its holdings in Western Union by 52.9% in the 2nd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 2,588 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 895 shares during the last quarter. LRI Investments LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Western Union in the first quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. lifted its position in 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 buying an additional 1,522 shares in the last quarter. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in 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 worth $46,000 after buying an additional 1,233 shares during the last quarter. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in Western Union by 1,189.7% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 7,854 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $94,000 after buying an additional 7,245 shares in the last quarter. 91.81% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price target on shares of Western Union from $16.00 to $14.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Citigroup restated a “neutral” rating and set a $13.00 price target on shares of Western Union in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. StockNews.com upgraded Western Union from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on 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 decreased their price target on 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 stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $12.86.

Western Union Price Performance

WU opened at $10.99 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $11.72 and its 200 day moving average price is $12.25. The Western Union Company has a 12-month low of $10.69 and a 12-month high of $14.19. The firm has a market cap of $3.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 5.64, a PEG ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 0.87. The company has a current ratio of 1.10, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.96.

Western Union (NYSE:WU) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The credit services provider reported $0.46 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.44 by $0.02. The business 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 for the quarter was down 5.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.43 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that The Western Union Company will post 1.77 earnings per share for the current year.

About Western Union

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.