The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU) Shares Bought by Essex Financial Services Inc.

Essex Financial Services Inc. grew its stake in shares of The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU) by 8.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 33,381 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,551 shares during the quarter. Essex Financial Services Inc.’s holdings in Western Union were worth $398,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WU. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Western Union by 1.4% in the 3rd quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 56,476 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $744,000 after acquiring an additional 791 shares during the period. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina grew its holdings in Western Union by 0.5% during the third quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 169,552 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $2,235,000 after acquiring an additional 842 shares during the period. Brown Advisory Inc. raised its position in Western Union by 0.5% in the third quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. now owns 197,250 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $2,600,000 after acquiring an additional 1,000 shares in the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp lifted its holdings in Western Union by 23.2% in the third quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 6,793 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $90,000 after acquiring an additional 1,278 shares during the period. Finally, Arizona State Retirement System boosted its position in shares of Western Union by 1.4% during the 3rd quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 106,623 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $1,405,000 after purchasing an additional 1,455 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.81% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Western Union

In other news, Director Timothy P. Murphy purchased 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 26th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $12.85 per share, with a total value of $128,500.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 56,205 shares in the company, valued at $722,234.25. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.85% of the company’s stock.

Western Union Price Performance

WU stock opened at $13.38 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $13.47 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $12.62. The company has a market cap of $4.53 billion, a PE ratio of 7.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.95 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.38. 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 issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The credit services provider reported $0.45 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.40 by $0.05. Western Union had a net margin of 14.12% and a return on equity of 120.76%. The business had revenue of $1.05 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.01 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.43 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that The Western Union Company will post 1.77 EPS for the current year.

Western Union Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 29th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 15th were paid a dividend of $0.235 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 14th. This represents a $0.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 7.03%. Western Union’s dividend payout ratio is currently 55.62%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently issued reports on WU. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Western Union from $13.00 to $14.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 25th. Monness Crespi & Hardt assumed coverage on shares of Western Union in a research note on Wednesday, March 20th. They issued a “neutral” rating for the company. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on shares of Western Union from $12.00 to $13.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 7th. William Blair reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Western Union in a report on Wednesday, February 7th. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their price objective on shares of Western Union from $14.00 to $15.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 25th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and nine have assigned a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $13.61.

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.