The Western Union Company $WU Shares Sold by Vanguard Group Inc.

Vanguard Group Inc. decreased its position in The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU) by 7.0% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 33,299,590 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 2,506,856 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. owned about 0.10% of Western Union worth $266,064,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in WU. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its stake in shares of Western Union by 5.5% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 782,266 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $6,250,000 after purchasing an additional 40,444 shares during the last quarter. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Western Union in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $133,000. Baader Bank Aktiengesellschaft purchased a new position in Western Union during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $92,000. Bryce Point Capital LLC lifted its stake in Western Union by 304.1% during the 3rd quarter. Bryce Point Capital LLC now owns 66,486 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $531,000 after acquiring an additional 50,032 shares during the period. Finally, Alps Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Western Union by 53.0% in the 3rd quarter. Alps Advisors Inc. now owns 2,399,631 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $19,173,000 after acquiring an additional 831,245 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.81% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Western Union from $8.50 to $9.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, November 10th. Susquehanna lifted their price objective on Western Union from $9.00 to $10.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, November 10th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on Western Union from $9.00 to $10.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 2nd. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Western Union in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald raised Western Union to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 27th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and five have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $8.82.

Western Union Price Performance

NYSE:WU opened at $9.60 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.12, a current ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.00. The Western Union Company has a 52 week low of $7.85 and a 52 week high of $11.94. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $9.50 and its 200-day moving average price is $8.94. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.01 billion, a PE ratio of 6.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.88 and a beta of 0.52.

Western Union (NYSE:WU) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, February 20th. The credit services provider reported $0.45 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.43 by $0.02. Western Union had a return on equity of 62.01% and a net margin of 12.33%.The company had revenue of $1 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.04 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.40 earnings per share. Western Union’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.7% on a year-over-year basis. Western Union has set its FY 2026 guidance at 1.750-1.850 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that The Western Union Company will post 1.79 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Western Union Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 17th will be paid a $0.235 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 17th. This represents a $0.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 9.8%. Western Union’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 61.84%.

Western Union Profile

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.