Range Financial Group LLC Has $1.52 Million Position in The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU)

Range Financial Group LLC raised its position in The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU) by 52.6% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 143,369 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after buying an additional 49,410 shares during the period. Range Financial Group LLC’s holdings in Western Union were worth $1,517,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. OLD National Bancorp IN boosted its position in Western Union by 16.0% in the first quarter. OLD National Bancorp IN now owns 762,999 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $8,073,000 after buying an additional 105,301 shares in the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its position in Western Union by 80.2% in the first quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 3,264 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 1,453 shares in the last quarter. Curat Global LLC acquired a new position in Western Union in the first quarter valued at about $121,000. Gilman Hill Asset Management LLC boosted its position in Western Union by 56.8% in the first quarter. Gilman Hill Asset Management LLC now owns 741,320 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $7,843,000 after buying an additional 268,494 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. boosted its position in Western Union by 9.8% in the first quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. now owns 129,757 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $1,373,000 after buying an additional 11,623 shares in the last quarter. 91.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Western Union Trading Up 1.8%

Shares of NYSE WU opened at $9.47 on Monday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $9.74 and its 200 day simple moving average is $10.34. The Western Union Company has a fifty-two week low of $9.00 and a fifty-two week high of $13.12. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 3.47, a P/E/G ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 0.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.04, a current ratio of 1.20 and a quick ratio of 1.10.

Western Union (NYSE:WU) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 23rd. The credit services provider reported $0.41 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.40 by $0.01. Western Union had a net margin of 22.19% and a return on equity of 96.90%. The business had revenue of $983.60 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.01 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.45 earnings per share. Western Union’s revenue was down 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts predict that The Western Union Company will post 1.79 EPS for the current year.

Western Union Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 16th will be paid a $0.235 dividend. This represents a $0.94 annualized dividend and a yield of 9.93%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 16th. Western Union’s payout ratio is presently 35.07%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WU has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their target price on shares of Western Union from $14.00 to $13.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Susquehanna dropped their target price on shares of Western Union from $12.00 to $11.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Oppenheimer initiated coverage on shares of Western Union in a research note on Monday, June 2nd. They issued a “market perform” rating for the company. Monness Crespi & Hardt downgraded shares of Western Union from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $7.50 target price for the company. in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their target price on shares of Western Union from $12.00 to $11.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eight have issued a hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $10.78.

Western Union 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.