Sanctuary Advisors LLC Has $341,000 Position in The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU)

Sanctuary Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU) by 17.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 32,761 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after buying an additional 4,752 shares during the period. Sanctuary Advisors LLC’s holdings in Western Union were worth $341,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D raised its position in Western Union by 17.6% in the 4th quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D now owns 195,271 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $2,070,000 after buying an additional 29,281 shares during the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP raised its holdings in shares of Western Union by 782.7% in the fourth quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 10,010 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $103,000 after purchasing an additional 8,876 shares during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its position in shares of Western Union by 19.1% during the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 480,543 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $5,094,000 after purchasing an additional 76,900 shares in the last quarter. Kentucky Trust Co purchased a new position in Western Union during the fourth quarter worth about $113,000. Finally, Savant Capital LLC bought a new stake in Western Union in the 4th quarter worth about $774,000. 91.81% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Western Union Price Performance

Western Union stock opened at $10.74 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $3.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 3.93, a PEG ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a quick ratio of 1.10, a current ratio of 1.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.04. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $10.53 and a 200 day simple moving average of $11.10. The Western Union Company has a 52 week low of $10.04 and a 52 week high of $14.19.

Western Union (NYSE:WU) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The credit services provider reported $0.40 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.42 by ($0.02). Western Union had a return on equity of 96.90% and a net margin of 22.19%. On average, research analysts forecast that The Western Union Company will post 1.79 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Western Union announced that its board has authorized a share 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 reacquire up to 27.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Western Union Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be issued a dividend of $0.235 per share. This represents a $0.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 8.75%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 17th. Western Union’s dividend payout ratio is currently 34.43%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Barclays cut their target price on Western Union from $11.00 to $10.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price objective on Western Union from $13.00 to $12.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on 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 reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Western Union in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Susquehanna decreased their price objective on shares of Western Union from $13.00 to $12.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. 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 data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $12.11.

Western Union Company 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.