Insight Folios Inc Invests $5.39 Million in The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU)

Insight Folios Inc acquired a new position in The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU) in the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm acquired 385,374 shares of the credit services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $5,388,000. Western Union accounts for about 2.2% of Insight Folios Inc’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 28th biggest holding.

Several other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of WU. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Western Union during the fourth quarter worth about $27,925,000. Allianz Asset Management GmbH grew its holdings in Western Union by 27.9% during the fourth quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 7,460,960 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $88,935,000 after acquiring an additional 1,627,822 shares during the period. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC grew its holdings in Western Union by 351.3% during the fourth quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 959,162 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $11,434,000 after acquiring an additional 746,625 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in Western Union by 18.9% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 4,543,650 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $54,161,000 after acquiring an additional 721,331 shares during the period. Finally, Schroder Investment Management Group grew its holdings in Western Union by 9.7% during the third quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 6,839,743 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $90,148,000 after acquiring an additional 605,620 shares during the period. 91.81% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Western Union Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:WU traded down $0.06 during trading on Thursday, reaching $12.25. The stock had a trading volume of 1,370,314 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,587,718. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.38, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a current ratio of 1.01. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $12.82 and a 200-day moving average price of $12.84. The stock has a market cap of $4.14 billion, a PE ratio of 7.25, a PEG ratio of 1.79 and a beta of 0.85. The Western Union Company has a 1-year low of $10.92 and a 1-year high of $14.19.

Western Union (NYSE:WU) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The credit services provider reported $0.45 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.40 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $1.05 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.01 billion. Western Union had a return on equity of 120.76% and a net margin of 14.12%. The business’s revenue was up 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.43 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that The Western Union Company will post 1.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Western Union Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 14th were paid a $0.235 dividend. This represents a $0.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 7.67%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 14th. Western Union’s dividend payout ratio is presently 55.62%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WU has been the topic of several analyst reports. Monness Crespi & Hardt initiated coverage on Western Union in a report on Wednesday, March 20th. They set a “neutral” rating on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Western Union from $13.00 to $14.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Finally, Evercore ISI raised their price objective on Western Union from $14.00 to $15.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and nine have given a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price 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.