Burney Co. lessened its stake in The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU - Free Report) by 75.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 102,993 shares of the credit services provider's stock after selling 314,277 shares during the quarter. Burney Co.'s holdings in Western Union were worth $1,092,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of WU. Millennium Management LLC raised its holdings in Western Union by 62.8% in the second quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 3,730,450 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $45,586,000 after buying an additional 1,439,310 shares during the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP lifted its position in Western Union by 52.0% in the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 3,337,466 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $40,784,000 after acquiring an additional 1,142,400 shares in the last quarter. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Western Union during the 3rd quarter valued at $11,726,000. Foundry Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Western Union in the 3rd quarter worth $8,124,000. Finally, Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ lifted its holdings in shares of Western Union by 751.7% during the second quarter. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ now owns 722,532 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $8,829,000 after purchasing an additional 637,702 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 91.81% of the company's stock.
Shares of Western Union stock opened at $10.52 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $3.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 5.39, a P/E/G ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.96, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a current ratio of 1.10. The stock's fifty day moving average is $10.73 and its 200 day moving average is $11.48. The Western Union Company has a one year low of $10.19 and a one year high of $14.19.
Western Union (NYSE:WU - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The credit services provider reported $0.46 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.44 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $1.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.03 billion. Western Union had a return on equity of 120.39% and a net margin of 16.07%. The business's quarterly revenue was down 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.43 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that The Western Union Company will post 1.77 earnings per share for the current year.
Western Union declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase program on Friday, December 13th that permits the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the credit services provider to buy up to 27.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are generally a sign that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.
The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 23rd were paid a $0.235 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 23rd. This represents a $0.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 8.94%. Western Union's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 48.21%.
WU has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Barclays reduced their price objective on Western Union from $11.00 to $10.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, December 13th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price objective on shares of Western Union from $13.00 to $12.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a report on Monday, December 9th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Western Union from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. Finally, UBS Group decreased their target price on shares of Western Union from $13.50 to $12.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and nine have given a hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $12.63.
Check Out Our Latest Stock Report on 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.
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