Royal Bank of Canada Cuts Western Union (NYSE:WU) Price Target to $14.00

Western Union (NYSE:WU) had its price objective lowered by Royal Bank of Canada from $16.00 to $14.00 in a report released on Wednesday morning, Benzinga reports. Royal Bank of Canada currently has a sector perform rating on the credit services provider’s stock.

Several other research analysts also recently weighed in on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Western Union from $13.00 to $14.00 and gave the stock an underweight rating in a research report on Thursday, April 25th. Evercore ISI boosted 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. Finally, Citigroup reaffirmed a neutral rating and issued a $13.00 target price on shares of Western Union in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and seven have issued a hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Western Union presently has an average rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $13.43.

Western Union Stock Down 1.3 %

Shares of WU stock opened at $11.52 on Wednesday. The business’s fifty day moving average is $12.47 and its 200-day moving average is $12.91. The stock has a market cap of $3.89 billion, a PE ratio of 6.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.75 and a beta of 0.85. Western Union has a 1 year low of $10.92 and a 1 year high of $14.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.98, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a current ratio of 1.05.

Western Union (NYSE:WU) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 30th. The credit services provider reported $0.44 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.45 by ($0.01). Western Union had a net margin of 13.64% and a return on equity of 123.71%. The business had revenue of $1.07 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.06 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.51 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 8.9% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts expect that Western Union will post 1.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Western Union Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 16th will be paid a $0.235 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 16th. This represents a $0.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 8.16%. Western Union’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 55.62%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Western Union

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in WU. National Bank of Canada FI increased its holdings in shares of Western Union by 1.1% during the 2nd quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 80,813 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $979,000 after acquiring an additional 896 shares during the last quarter. Dakota Wealth Management grew its holdings in Western Union by 1.8% during the second quarter. Dakota Wealth Management now owns 56,066 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $685,000 after purchasing an additional 979 shares during the last quarter. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Western Union by 2.3% in the fourth quarter. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. now owns 44,100 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $526,000 after purchasing an additional 1,000 shares during the period. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Western Union by 3.4% in the fourth quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 32,277 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $385,000 after buying an additional 1,076 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Western Union by 59.9% during the 1st 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 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.