Western Union (NYSE:WU) Downgraded by Monness Crespi & Hardt to “Sell”

Monness Crespi & Hardt cut shares of Western Union (NYSE:WU) from a neutral rating to a sell rating in a research report report published on Thursday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. The firm currently has $7.50 target price on the credit services provider’s stock.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently commented on the company. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on Western Union from $10.00 to $9.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. JMP Securities restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Western Union in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $14.00 target price on shares of Western Union in a report on Thursday, April 3rd. Finally, Susquehanna dropped 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. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eight have issued a hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $11.20.

Western Union Stock Up 0.8 %

Shares of NYSE:WU opened at $10.19 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.10, a current ratio of 1.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.04. The company has a market capitalization of $3.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 3.73, a P/E/G ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 0.69. Western Union has a 52-week low of $9.00 and a 52-week high of $13.93. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $10.42 and its 200-day simple moving average is $10.68.

Western Union (NYSE:WU) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 23rd. The credit services provider reported $0.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.40 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $983.60 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.01 billion. Western Union had a net margin of 22.19% and a return on equity of 96.90%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Western Union will post 1.79 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Western Union Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 17th were paid a dividend of $0.235 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 17th. This represents a $0.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 9.22%. Western Union’s dividend payout ratio is currently 34.43%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. R Squared Ltd acquired a new position in Western Union in the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Independence Bank of Kentucky acquired a new position in shares of Western Union in the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. McIlrath & Eck LLC boosted its holdings in Western Union by 1,487.6% in the fourth quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC now owns 3,080 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 2,886 shares during the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. grew its stake in Western Union by 80.2% during the 1st quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 3,264 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 1,453 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Huntington National Bank increased its holdings in Western Union by 662.7% during the 4th quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 3,722 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 3,234 shares during the last quarter. 91.81% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.