Citigroup Has Lowered Expectations for Western Union (NYSE:WU) Stock Price

Western Union (NYSE:WU) had its price objective lowered by equities researchers at Citigroup from $9.50 to $8.50 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a “neutral” rating on the credit services provider’s stock. Citigroup’s price target points to a potential downside of 3.02% from the stock’s current price.

Other research analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on Western Union from $9.00 to $8.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday. Weiss Ratings lowered Western Union from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a research note on Friday, June 5th. Finally, Barclays assumed coverage on Western Union in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. They issued an “underweight” rating and a $7.00 price target on the stock. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and six have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $8.45.

Western Union Price Performance

Shares of Western Union stock traded up $0.42 during trading on Friday, reaching $8.77. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 7,477,982 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,510,549. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $7.89 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $8.84. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.03 and a beta of 0.46. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.88. Western Union has a one year low of $6.91 and a one year high of $10.35.

Western Union (NYSE:WU) last announced its earnings results on Friday, April 24th. The credit services provider reported $0.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.40 by ($0.15). The company had revenue of $963.50 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.06 billion. Western Union had a return on equity of 55.94% and a net margin of 10.88%.Western Union’s revenue for the quarter was down .1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.41 earnings per share. Western Union has set its FY 2026 guidance at 1.750-1.850 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Western Union will post 1.75 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Western Union

In related news, insider Giovanni Angelini sold 6,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $9.47, for a total transaction of $56,820.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 311,292 shares in the company, valued at $2,947,935.24. This trade represents a 1.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, insider Benjamin Carlton Adams sold 19,924 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $9.23, for a total transaction of $183,898.52. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 234,689 shares in the company, valued at $2,166,179.47. This represents a 7.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 3.29% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in Western Union by 3.5% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 34,471,400 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $320,929,000 after buying an additional 1,171,810 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its position in Western Union by 4.3% during the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 13,984,472 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $130,195,000 after buying an additional 580,264 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Western Union by 5.0% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 13,081,062 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $121,785,000 after acquiring an additional 624,397 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Western Union by 9.8% during the 4th quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 10,746,779 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $99,891,000 after acquiring an additional 962,341 shares during the period. Finally, Capital Research Global Investors increased its holdings in shares of Western Union by 35.3% during the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 10,407,960 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $96,898,000 after acquiring an additional 2,716,385 shares during the last quarter. 91.81% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Western Union

Western Union Company (NYSE: WU) is a global leader in cross-border, cross-currency money movement and payments. The company enables individuals and businesses to send and receive money through a variety of channels, including its vast agent network, online platforms, and mobile applications. Core services include person-to-person money transfers, business-to-business cross-border payments, bill payment services and prepaid card programs.

Through its digital offerings, Western Union provides customers with the ability to initiate transfers via its website and mobile app, as well as track transactions in real time.