Western Union (NYSE:WU) Shares Gap Down After Earnings Miss

The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU) shares gapped down before the market opened on Friday following a weaker than expected earnings announcement. The stock had previously closed at $9.33, but opened at $8.35. Western Union shares last traded at $8.1760, with a volume of 9,951,676 shares changing hands.

The credit services provider reported $0.25 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.45 by ($0.20). The firm had revenue of $963.50 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.06 billion. Western Union had a net margin of 12.33% and a return on equity of 62.01%. The company’s revenue was down .1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.41 EPS. Western Union has set its FY 2026 guidance at 1.750-1.850 EPS.

Western Union Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 17th were given a dividend of $0.235 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 17th. This represents a $0.94 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 11.2%. Western Union’s payout ratio is presently 61.84%.

Trending Headlines about Western Union

Here are the key news stories impacting Western Union this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Growth in digital and consumer segments — Management said Consumer Services and Branded Digital grew in Q1, partially offsetting weakness in retail and supporting longer-term revenue diversification. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: FY26 guidance roughly in line with consensus — WU set EPS guidance of $1.75–$1.85 (consensus ~$1.78) and revenue guidance of $4.2B–$4.4B, which is broadly consistent with street expectations but leaves little upside. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Investor presentation and slides released — Management provided the Q1 slide deck and earnings presentation with segment detail and metrics for the call; useful for modeling segment trends and margin drivers. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Big EPS miss — Reported EPS of $0.25 vs. consensus ~$0.45, a material shortfall that drove the negative reaction. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Revenue below expectations and flat year-over-year — Q1 revenue of about $963–983M missed analyst estimates (~$1.06B on some models) and adjusted revenue was down ~1%, reinforcing concerns about top-line pressure. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Americas retail headwinds called out — Management highlighted macro weakness in the Americas retail channel, a material segment for cross-border cash flows and margins. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Analysts revised estimates ahead of the print — Several analysts trimmed Q1/Q2 estimates, signaling lower near-term earnings visibility. Read More.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on WU. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on shares of Western Union from $9.00 to $10.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 2nd. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Western Union in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald raised shares of Western Union to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 27th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and five have issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Western Union currently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $8.82.

Institutional Trading of Western Union

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of WU. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC raised its holdings in Western Union by 15.5% in the 1st quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 39,859 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $422,000 after buying an additional 5,351 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its holdings in Western Union by 27.4% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,964,972 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $20,789,000 after buying an additional 422,715 shares during the period. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC raised its holdings in Western Union by 9.0% in the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 1,861,908 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $19,699,000 after buying an additional 154,110 shares during the period. Focus Partners Wealth raised its holdings in Western Union by 93.5% in the 1st quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 27,535 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $291,000 after buying an additional 13,302 shares during the period. Finally, Prudential Financial Inc. raised its holdings in Western Union by 24.7% in the 2nd quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 36,874 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $310,000 after buying an additional 7,314 shares during the period. 91.81% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Western Union Stock Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $2.63 billion, a PE ratio of 5.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 0.50. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $9.28 and its 200-day moving average is $9.16. The company has a current ratio of 1.19, a quick ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.00.

Western Union Company 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.