Gateway Investment Advisers LLC Trims Position in TransUnion (NYSE:TRU)

Gateway Investment Advisers LLC trimmed its holdings in TransUnion (NYSE:TRU) by 37.8% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 13,983 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 8,508 shares during the period. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC’s holdings in TransUnion were worth $1,160,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of TransUnion by 3.4% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 700,518 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $64,945,000 after acquiring an additional 22,826 shares during the period. Jones Financial Companies Lllp increased its stake in shares of TransUnion by 62.1% during the fourth quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 2,097 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $194,000 after acquiring an additional 803 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its stake in shares of TransUnion by 39.5% during the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 315,530 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $29,253,000 after acquiring an additional 89,340 shares during the period. Financiere des Professionnels Fonds d investissement inc. increased its stake in shares of TransUnion by 32.2% during the fourth quarter. Financiere des Professionnels Fonds d investissement inc. now owns 191,364 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $17,741,000 after acquiring an additional 46,612 shares during the period. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of TransUnion by 28.8% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 733 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $68,000 after acquiring an additional 164 shares during the period.

TransUnion Stock Up 0.2%

Shares of NYSE TRU opened at $86.20 on Monday. TransUnion has a 12-month low of $66.38 and a 12-month high of $113.17. The company has a market capitalization of $16.82 billion, a PE ratio of 59.04, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18, a current ratio of 1.70 and a quick ratio of 1.70. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $81.80 and its two-hundred day moving average is $89.29.

TransUnion (NYSE:TRU) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The business services provider reported $1.05 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.98 by $0.07. TransUnion had a net margin of 6.80% and a return on equity of 15.85%. The company had revenue of $1.10 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.07 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.92 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that TransUnion will post 3.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

TransUnion Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 6th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 22nd were paid a dividend of $0.115 per share. This represents a $0.46 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.53%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 22nd. TransUnion’s payout ratio is 24.47%.

TransUnion declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Thursday, February 13th that permits the company to buyback $500.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the business services provider to reacquire up to 2.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on TRU shares. Oppenheimer boosted their price target on shares of TransUnion from $96.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. William Blair reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of TransUnion in a research note on Monday, March 24th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of TransUnion in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Bank of America started coverage on shares of TransUnion in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. They set an “underperform” rating and a $84.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on shares of TransUnion from $130.00 to $117.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 14th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $109.69.

Insider Activity at TransUnion

In related news, insider Steven M. Chaouki sold 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $82.96, for a total transaction of $82,960.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 76,393 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,337,563.28. This represents a 1.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 3,000 shares of company stock valued at $251,180. Company insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

TransUnion Profile

TransUnion operates as a global consumer credit reporting agency that provides risk and information solutions. The company operates through U.S. Markets, International, and Consumer Interactive segments. The U.S. Markets segment provides consumer reports, actionable insights, and analytic services to businesses, which uses its services to acquire new customers; assess consumer ability to pay for services; identify cross-selling opportunities; measure and manage debt portfolio risk; collect debt; verify consumer identities; and mitigate fraud risk.