JPMorgan Chase & Co. Has Lowered Expectations for Western Union (NYSE:WU) Stock Price

Western Union (NYSE:WU - Get Free Report) had its target price lowered by investment analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $11.00 to $9.00 in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an "underweight" rating on the credit services provider's stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.'s price target indicates a potential upside of 10.63% from the stock's current price.

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A number of other equities research analysts have also issued reports on WU. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on shares of Western Union from $9.00 to $7.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their target price on shares of Western Union from $11.00 to $10.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft started coverage on Western Union in a research note on Thursday, July 17th. They issued a "hold" rating and a $9.00 price objective for the company. Oppenheimer began coverage on shares of Western Union in a research report on Monday, June 2nd. They issued a "market perform" rating for the company. Finally, JMP Securities restated a "market perform" rating on shares of Western Union in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eight have given a hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Western Union presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $8.72.

Get Our Latest Stock Analysis on WU

Western Union Stock Performance

Shares of Western Union stock traded down $0.31 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $8.14. The company had a trading volume of 9,987,328 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,096,737. The company has a quick ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.97. Western Union has a 12-month low of $7.99 and a 12-month high of $13.11. The stock has a market cap of $2.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 3.04, a PEG ratio of 1.48 and a beta of 0.65. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $8.81 and a 200 day simple moving average of $9.79.

Western Union (NYSE:WU - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 28th. The credit services provider reported $0.42 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.44 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $1.03 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.04 billion. Western Union had a net margin of 22.08% and a return on equity of 77.19%. The firm's revenue was down 3.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.44 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that Western Union will post 1.79 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in WU. Captrust Financial Advisors lifted its holdings in shares of Western Union by 4.6% during the 4th quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 22,298 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $236,000 after acquiring an additional 982 shares during the period. State of Alaska Department of Revenue increased its holdings in Western Union by 0.5% in the 1st quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 239,236 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $2,530,000 after purchasing an additional 1,085 shares in the last quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale raised its holdings in shares of Western Union by 0.7% during the 1st quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale now owns 186,822 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $1,947,000 after buying an additional 1,249 shares during the period. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Western Union by 0.3% during the first quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 405,839 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $4,294,000 after purchasing an additional 1,262 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SummerHaven Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in Western Union by 2.3% in the 1st quarter. SummerHaven Investment Management LLC now owns 62,824 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $665,000 after buying an additional 1,393 shares in the last quarter. 91.81% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.

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