TransUnion (NYSE:TRU) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Shares of TransUnion (NYSE:TRU) have been assigned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the sixteen brokerages that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12 month target price among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $107.06.

A number of analysts have recently commented on TRU shares. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on TransUnion from $103.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Oppenheimer cut their target price on TransUnion from $122.00 to $115.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on TransUnion from $119.00 to $130.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “hold” rating on shares of TransUnion in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $121.00 price objective on shares of TransUnion in a research note on Thursday, October 24th.

TransUnion Stock Performance

TransUnion stock opened at $95.53 on Wednesday. TransUnion has a 12-month low of $63.03 and a 12-month high of $113.17. The company has a quick ratio of 1.68, a current ratio of 1.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $100.91 and a 200 day simple moving average of $93.32. The stock has a market capitalization of $18.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 83.07, a P/E/G ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 1.60.

TransUnion (NYSE:TRU) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The business services provider reported $1.04 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.01 by $0.03. TransUnion had a return on equity of 15.38% and a net margin of 5.47%. The firm had revenue of $1.09 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.06 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.80 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 12.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts anticipate that TransUnion will post 3.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

TransUnion Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 22nd were issued a $0.105 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 22nd. This represents a $0.42 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.44%. TransUnion’s dividend payout ratio is presently 36.52%.

Insider Buying and Selling at TransUnion

In related news, insider Steven M. Chaouki sold 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $105.66, for a total transaction of $158,490.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 62,988 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,655,312.08. This trade represents a 2.33 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director George M. Awad sold 12,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $100.00, for a total transaction of $1,200,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 27,026 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,702,600. This trade represents a 30.75 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 20,590 shares of company stock valued at $2,084,633 in the last ninety days. 0.28% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On TransUnion

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of TRU. Huntington National Bank lifted its position in shares of TransUnion by 84.5% during the 3rd quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 286 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 131 shares during the period. Quarry LP grew its holdings in shares of TransUnion by 963.0% in the second quarter. Quarry LP now owns 574 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $43,000 after acquiring an additional 520 shares in the last quarter. True Wealth Design LLC boosted its holdings in shares of TransUnion by 4,590.0% in the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 469 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $49,000 after buying an additional 459 shares during the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI grew its position in shares of TransUnion by 22.3% during the 2nd quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 910 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $66,000 after acquiring an additional 166 shares during the period. Finally, Ridgewood Investments LLC purchased a new stake in TransUnion in the second quarter worth $75,000.

About TransUnion

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.