149,600 Shares in The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU) Bought by KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS

KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS purchased a new stake in shares of The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 149,600 shares of the credit services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,586,000.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in WU. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its position in shares of Western Union by 20.0% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,698,559 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $20,264,000 after purchasing an additional 283,479 shares in the last quarter. Citigroup Inc. raised its position in Western Union by 19.0% during the third quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 523,676 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $6,247,000 after purchasing an additional 83,715 shares during the period. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in Western Union during the 3rd quarter valued at $734,000. Kestra Investment Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Western Union by 50.6% in the fourth quarter. Kestra Investment Management LLC now owns 122,956 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $1,303,000 after acquiring an additional 41,317 shares during the period. Finally, Range Financial Group LLC lifted its stake in Western Union by 828.1% in the fourth quarter. Range Financial Group LLC now owns 93,959 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $996,000 after purchasing an additional 83,835 shares during the last quarter. 91.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Western Union Price Performance

NYSE:WU opened at $10.48 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $10.63 and its two-hundred day moving average is $10.95. The firm has a market cap of $3.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 3.84, a PEG ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 0.79. The Western Union Company has a one year low of $10.04 and a one year high of $13.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.04, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a current ratio of 1.20.

Western Union (NYSE:WU) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The credit services provider reported $0.40 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.42 by ($0.02). Western Union had a return on equity of 96.90% and a net margin of 22.19%. Research analysts expect that The Western Union Company will post 1.79 EPS for the current year.

Western Union announced that its board has approved a stock buyback plan on Friday, December 13th that permits the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the credit services provider to buy up to 27.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Western Union Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Monday, March 17th will be paid a $0.235 dividend. This represents a $0.94 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 8.97%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 17th. Western Union’s dividend payout ratio is currently 34.43%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WU has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Susquehanna decreased their target price on Western Union from $13.00 to $12.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Barclays reduced their price target on Western Union from $11.00 to $10.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on shares of Western Union from $10.00 to $9.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. JMP Securities restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Western Union in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price objective on shares of Western Union from $13.00 to $12.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, December 9th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eight have issued a hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $12.11.

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.