Western Union (NYSE:WU) Shares Up 3.9% – Here’s Why

The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU)’s share price rose 3.9% during mid-day trading on Friday. The company traded as high as $6.24 and last traded at $6.2650. Approximately 1,191,533 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 87% from the average session volume of 9,094,793 shares. The stock had previously closed at $6.03.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Wolfe Research reaffirmed an “underperform” rating and set a $8.00 price objective on shares of Western Union in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Barclays decreased their target price on Western Union from $7.00 to $6.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Cantor Fitzgerald decreased their price objective on shares of Western Union from $8.00 to $7.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Susquehanna dropped their price target on Western Union from $10.00 to $8.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Finally, New Street Research reaffirmed a “reduce” rating on shares of Western Union in a report on Thursday, August 13th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and eight have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Strong Sell” and an average price target of $7.45.

Western Union Trading Up 2.7%

The stock has a market capitalization of $1.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 5.04 and a beta of 0.50. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $7.25 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $8.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.95, a quick ratio of 1.12 and a current ratio of 1.12.

Western Union (NYSE:WU) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 30th. The credit services provider reported $0.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.42 by ($0.11). Western Union had a net margin of 9.79% and a return on equity of 50.89%. The company had revenue of $1.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.02 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.37 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Western Union has set its FY 2026 guidance at 1.250-1.350 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that The Western Union Company will post 1.29 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Western Union Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, September 16th will be issued a $0.2350 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, September 16th. This represents a $0.94 annualized dividend and a yield of 15.2%. Western Union’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 76.42%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Miramontes Capital LLC boosted its position in shares of Western Union by 99.8% during the second quarter. Miramontes Capital LLC now owns 95,436 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $735,000 after purchasing an additional 47,667 shares in the last quarter. Engineers Gate Manager LP increased its position in Western Union by 467.6% during the 2nd quarter. Engineers Gate Manager LP now owns 1,699,841 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $13,089,000 after buying an additional 1,400,369 shares in the last quarter. Nykredit A S bought a new position in Western Union in the 2nd quarter worth about $51,000. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al purchased a new stake in shares of Western Union during the second quarter valued at approximately $977,000. Finally, AlphaGrep UK Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Western Union during the second quarter valued at approximately $104,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.81% of the company’s stock.

About Western Union

Western Union Company (NYSE:WU) is a global provider of money movement and payment services. The company enables consumers and businesses to send and receive money across borders and within individual markets through digital platforms, mobile applications and a network of retail agent locations.

Its services include consumer money transfers, international remittances, bill payments and money orders. Customers can typically initiate transfers online, through the Western Union app or at participating retail locations, with recipients able to collect funds in cash or receive them through eligible bank accounts, digital wallets or other payment methods, depending on the destination market.

Western Union traces its origins to 1851, when it was established as a telegraph company in the United States.