Swiss National Bank Increases Stake in The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU)

Swiss National Bank increased its holdings in The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU) by 0.6% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 664,300 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,800 shares during the quarter. Swiss National Bank’s holdings in Western Union were worth $7,042,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. True Wealth Design LLC purchased a new position in shares of Western Union in the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. R Squared Ltd purchased a new position in Western Union in the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Independence Bank of Kentucky bought a new position in Western Union in the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB lifted its position in shares of Western Union by 1,734.7% during the fourth quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 4,862 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $52,000 after buying an additional 4,597 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sound Income Strategies LLC bought a new stake in shares of Western Union in the 4th quarter valued at about $53,000. 91.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Western Union Stock Performance

WU opened at $10.64 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.20, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.04. The Western Union Company has a 12-month low of $10.04 and a 12-month high of $14.00. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $10.62 and a two-hundred day moving average of $11.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.59 billion, a PE ratio of 3.90, a P/E/G ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 0.79.

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

Western Union Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Monday, March 17th will be given a dividend of $0.235 per share. This represents a $0.94 annualized dividend and a yield of 8.84%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 17th. Western Union’s dividend payout ratio is currently 34.43%.

Western Union announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase program on Friday, December 13th that permits the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the credit services provider to reacquire up to 27.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WU has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Barclays decreased their target price on shares of Western Union from $11.00 to $10.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on Western Union from $10.00 to $9.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. 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 research note on Monday, December 9th. Susquehanna decreased their price target on Western Union from $13.00 to $12.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, JMP Securities restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Western Union in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eight have given a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $12.11.

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.