TransUnion (NYSE:TRU) Shares Acquired by Artisan Partners Limited Partnership

Artisan Partners Limited Partnership increased its stake in shares of TransUnion (NYSE:TRU) by 45.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 53,475 shares of the business services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 16,595 shares during the quarter. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership’s holdings in TransUnion were worth $4,958,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its holdings in shares of TransUnion by 82.1% in the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 428 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 193 shares during the period. True Wealth Design LLC increased its stake in TransUnion by 4,590.0% in the third quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 469 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $49,000 after purchasing an additional 459 shares during the period. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in shares of TransUnion in the fourth quarter valued at about $44,000. Kestra Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of TransUnion during the fourth quarter worth about $51,000. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of TransUnion by 28.8% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 733 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $68,000 after buying an additional 164 shares during the last quarter.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have weighed in on TRU shares. UBS Group increased their price objective on TransUnion from $102.00 to $104.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on shares of TransUnion from $130.00 to $127.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Needham & Company LLC restated a “hold” rating on shares of TransUnion in a research note on Friday, February 14th. William Blair reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of TransUnion in a research note on Monday, March 24th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of TransUnion from $135.00 to $126.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, TransUnion currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $114.08.

TransUnion Stock Performance

NYSE TRU opened at $82.27 on Friday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $91.72 and a 200 day moving average price of $97.14. The company has a market capitalization of $16.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 56.35, a PEG ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.70. TransUnion has a 1-year low of $66.07 and a 1-year high of $113.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18, a current ratio of 1.70 and a quick ratio of 1.70.

TransUnion (NYSE:TRU) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The business services provider reported $0.83 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.97 by ($0.14). TransUnion had a net margin of 6.80% and a return on equity of 15.85%. The firm had revenue of $1.04 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.03 billion. Sell-side analysts expect that TransUnion will post 3.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

TransUnion Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 27th were issued a $0.115 dividend. This represents a $0.46 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.56%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 27th. This is an increase from TransUnion’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.11. TransUnion’s dividend payout ratio is 31.51%.

TransUnion announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Thursday, February 13th that permits the company to buyback $500.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the business services provider to reacquire up to 2.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity

In other TransUnion news, EVP Venkat Achanta sold 1,821 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $95.74, for a total transaction of $174,342.54. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 105,443 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,095,112.82. This represents a 1.70 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Steven M. Chaouki sold 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $93.60, for a total value of $93,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 59,488 shares in the company, valued at $5,568,076.80. This represents a 1.65 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 4,021 shares of company stock worth $383,041 over the last ninety days. 0.22% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

TransUnion Profile

TransUnion operates as a global consumer credit reporting agency that provides risk and information solutions. The company operates through U.S. Markets, International, and Consumer Interactive segments. The U.S. Markets segment provides consumer reports, actionable insights, and analytic services to businesses, which uses its services to acquire new customers; assess consumer ability to pay for services; identify cross-selling opportunities; measure and manage debt portfolio risk; collect debt; verify consumer identities; and mitigate fraud risk.