Range Financial Group LLC Increases Stock Position in The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU)

Range Financial Group LLC grew its stake in The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU) by 6.3% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 115,111 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after buying an additional 6,837 shares during the period. Range Financial Group LLC’s holdings in Western Union were worth $1,407,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Dakota Wealth Management boosted its stake in Western Union by 1.8% in the second quarter. Dakota Wealth Management now owns 56,066 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $685,000 after buying an additional 979 shares in the last quarter. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Western Union by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. now owns 44,100 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $526,000 after acquiring an additional 1,000 shares during the period. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. increased its stake in Western Union by 3.4% in the 4th quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 32,277 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $385,000 after purchasing an additional 1,076 shares during the period. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in Western Union by 59.9% in the first quarter. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,292 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 1,233 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Covestor Ltd boosted its stake in shares of Western Union by 14.2% during the first quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 11,751 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $164,000 after purchasing an additional 1,465 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 91.81% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Citigroup reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $13.00 price target on shares of Western Union in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on Western Union from $14.00 to $12.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, August 20th. StockNews.com raised Western Union from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 29th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada cut their price target on shares of Western Union from $16.00 to $14.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eight have given a hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $13.14.

Western Union Stock Performance

Shares of Western Union stock opened at $12.21 on Thursday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $12.12 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $12.80. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.23, a P/E/G ratio of 1.83 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a current ratio of 1.05, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.98. The Western Union Company has a 12 month low of $10.92 and a 12 month high of $14.19.

Western Union (NYSE:WU) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 30th. The credit services provider reported $0.44 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.45 by ($0.01). Western Union had a return on equity of 123.71% and a net margin of 13.64%. The business had revenue of $1.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.06 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.51 EPS. Western Union’s revenue for the quarter was down 8.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that The Western Union Company will post 1.77 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Western Union Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 16th will be paid a dividend of $0.235 per share. This represents a $0.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 7.70%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 16th. Western Union’s payout ratio is 55.62%.

Western Union Company Profile

The Western Union Company provides money movement and payment services worldwide. The company operates through Consumer Money Transfer and Consumer Services segments. The Consumer Money Transfer segment facilitates money transfers for international cross-border and intra-country transfers, primarily through a network of retail agent locations, as well as through websites and mobile devices.