TransUnion (NYSE:TRU) Receives Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Shares of TransUnion (NYSE:TRU) have been given an average rating of “Moderate Buy” by the sixteen research firms that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and ten have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 1-year price target among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $106.38.

TRU has been the topic of several research reports. Needham & Company LLC restated a “hold” rating on shares of TransUnion in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Oppenheimer reduced their target price on shares of TransUnion from $122.00 to $115.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. Barclays raised their price target on shares of TransUnion from $80.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, September 13th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of TransUnion from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on TransUnion from $97.00 to $109.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd.

TransUnion Stock Performance

Shares of TransUnion stock opened at $101.50 on Friday. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $103.61 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $90.25. The firm has a market capitalization of $19.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 88.26, a P/E/G ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 1.62. TransUnion has a fifty-two week low of $57.80 and a fifty-two week high of $113.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19, a current ratio of 1.68 and a quick ratio of 1.68.

TransUnion (NYSE:TRU) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The business services provider reported $1.04 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.01 by $0.03. TransUnion had a return on equity of 15.38% and a net margin of 5.47%. The company had revenue of $1.09 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.06 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.80 EPS. TransUnion’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that TransUnion will post 3.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

TransUnion Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 22nd will be issued a $0.105 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 22nd. This represents a $0.42 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.41%. TransUnion’s payout ratio is currently 36.52%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director George M. Awad sold 12,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $100.00, for a total transaction of $1,200,000.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 27,026 shares in the company, valued at $2,702,600. The trade was a 30.75 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Timothy J. Martin sold 2,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $95.65, for a total transaction of $239,125.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 49,239 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,709,710.35. The trade was a 4.83 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 19,500 shares of company stock worth $1,954,740. Corporate insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Huntington National Bank increased its holdings in shares of TransUnion by 84.5% during the third quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 286 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 131 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP grew its position in TransUnion by 963.0% in the 2nd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 574 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $43,000 after purchasing an additional 520 shares during the period. True Wealth Design LLC increased its stake in TransUnion by 4,590.0% during the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 469 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $49,000 after purchasing an additional 459 shares in the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI raised its holdings in TransUnion by 22.3% during the second quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 910 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $66,000 after buying an additional 166 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. lifted its stake in shares of TransUnion by 156.6% in the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 857 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $68,000 after buying an additional 523 shares in the last quarter.

About TransUnion

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.