Brevan Howard Capital Management LP Increases Stock Position in The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU)

Brevan Howard Capital Management LP grew its position in shares of The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU) by 119.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 199,082 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 108,388 shares during the period. Brevan Howard Capital Management LP owned approximately 0.06% of Western Union worth $2,110,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its position in Western Union by 20.0% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,698,559 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $20,264,000 after acquiring an additional 283,479 shares in the last quarter. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC raised its position in Western Union by 10.9% in the 4th quarter. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC now owns 68,237 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $723,000 after purchasing an additional 6,727 shares during the period. Kestra Investment Management LLC raised its holdings 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 buying an additional 41,317 shares during the period. Range Financial Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Western Union by 828.1% during the 4th quarter. Range Financial Group LLC now owns 93,959 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $996,000 after acquiring an additional 83,835 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Foresight Capital Management Advisors Inc. bought a new position in Western Union in the 4th quarter valued at $922,000. 91.81% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Western Union Stock Down 0.7 %

Western Union stock opened at $9.66 on Wednesday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $10.28 and its two-hundred day moving average is $10.56. The stock has a market cap of $3.19 billion, a PE ratio of 3.54, a P/E/G ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 0.72. The Western Union Company has a 1-year low of $9.00 and a 1-year high of $13.50. 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 posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The credit services provider reported $0.41 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.40 by $0.01. Western Union had a return on equity of 96.90% and a net margin of 22.19%. The firm had revenue of $983.60 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.01 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.45 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts expect that The Western Union Company will post 1.79 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on WU shares. JMP Securities reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Western Union in a report on Thursday, April 24th. UBS Group reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $10.50 target price (down previously from $11.00) on shares of Western Union in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price objective on Western Union from $14.00 to $13.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Monness Crespi & Hardt cut shares of Western Union from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $7.50 target price for the company. in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price objective on Western Union from $12.00 to $11.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and seven have given a hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Western Union presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $10.78.

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.