Alberta Investment Management Corp Makes New Investment in The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU)

Alberta Investment Management Corp purchased a new stake in The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU) during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor purchased 20,600 shares of the credit services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $218,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund bought a new stake in Western Union in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $207,000. Kestra Investment Management LLC lifted its position 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 worth $1,303,000 after purchasing an additional 41,317 shares in the last quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. boosted its holdings in Western Union by 3.5% during the fourth quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 45,825 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $486,000 after purchasing an additional 1,565 shares during the last quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC grew its position in Western Union by 17.0% in the fourth quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 32,761 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $341,000 after purchasing an additional 4,752 shares in the last quarter. Finally, State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D increased its stake 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. 91.81% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Western Union Trading Down 1.0 %

WU stock opened at $10.63 on Friday. The Western Union Company has a one year low of $10.04 and a one year high of $14.19. The stock has a market cap of $3.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 3.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $10.54 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $11.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.04, a current ratio of 1.20 and a quick ratio of 1.10.

Western Union (NYSE:WU) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The credit services provider reported $0.40 EPS 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%. Equities analysts anticipate that The Western Union Company will post 1.79 EPS for the current year.

Western Union announced that its board has initiated a stock buyback plan on Friday, December 13th that permits the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the credit services provider to purchase up to 27.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Western Union Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be paid a dividend of $0.235 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 17th. This represents a $0.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 8.84%. Western Union’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 34.43%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently commented on WU. Barclays reduced their price objective on shares of Western Union from $11.00 to $10.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price target 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. JMP Securities reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Western Union in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on Western Union from $10.00 to $9.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, Susquehanna lowered their target price on shares of Western Union from $13.00 to $12.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and nine have given a hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target 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.