Western Union (NYSE:WU) Shares Gap Down After Earnings Miss

The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU) shares gapped down prior to trading on Friday after the company announced weaker than expected quarterly earnings. The stock had previously closed at $9.33, but opened at $8.35. Western Union shares last traded at $8.1760, with a volume of 9,951,676 shares changing hands.

The credit services provider reported $0.25 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.45 by ($0.20). The company had revenue of $963.50 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.06 billion. Western Union had a return on equity of 62.01% and a net margin of 12.33%.Western Union’s revenue was down .1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.41 EPS. Western Union has set its FY 2026 guidance at 1.750-1.850 EPS.

Western Union Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 17th were issued a $0.235 dividend. This represents a $0.94 annualized dividend and a yield of 11.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 17th. Western Union’s payout ratio is presently 61.84%.

Key Stories Impacting Western Union

Here are the key news stories impacting Western Union this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Growth in digital and consumer segments — Management said Consumer Services and Branded Digital grew in Q1, partially offsetting weakness in retail and supporting longer-term revenue diversification. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: FY26 guidance roughly in line with consensus — WU set EPS guidance of $1.75–$1.85 (consensus ~$1.78) and revenue guidance of $4.2B–$4.4B, which is broadly consistent with street expectations but leaves little upside. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Investor presentation and slides released — Management provided the Q1 slide deck and earnings presentation with segment detail and metrics for the call; useful for modeling segment trends and margin drivers. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Big EPS miss — Reported EPS of $0.25 vs. consensus ~$0.45, a material shortfall that drove the negative reaction. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Revenue below expectations and flat year-over-year — Q1 revenue of about $963–983M missed analyst estimates (~$1.06B on some models) and adjusted revenue was down ~1%, reinforcing concerns about top-line pressure. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Americas retail headwinds called out — Management highlighted macro weakness in the Americas retail channel, a material segment for cross-border cash flows and margins. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Analysts revised estimates ahead of the print — Several analysts trimmed Q1/Q2 estimates, signaling lower near-term earnings visibility. Read More.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WU has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on shares of Western Union from $9.00 to $10.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, January 2nd. Cantor Fitzgerald raised shares of Western Union to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 27th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Western Union in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and five have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $8.82.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Western Union

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB boosted its stake in Western Union by 606.7% during the 3rd quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 3,265 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 2,803 shares during the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its stake in Western Union by 260.7% during the 3rd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 3,593 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 2,597 shares during the last quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC boosted its stake in Western Union by 1,546.5% during the 4th quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 3,326 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 3,124 shares during the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp boosted its stake in Western Union by 67.0% during the 4th quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 3,331 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 1,336 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd boosted its stake in Western Union by 179.6% during the 4th quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 3,341 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 2,146 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.81% of the company’s stock.

Western Union Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.00, a quick ratio of 1.19 and a current ratio of 1.19. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $9.28 and its 200-day simple moving average is $9.16. The company has a market cap of $2.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 5.43, a PEG ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 0.50.

Western Union Company Profile

Western Union Company (NYSE: WU) is a global leader in cross-border, cross-currency money movement and payments. The company enables individuals and businesses to send and receive money through a variety of channels, including its vast agent network, online platforms, and mobile applications. Core services include person-to-person money transfers, business-to-business cross-border payments, bill payment services and prepaid card programs.

Through its digital offerings, Western Union provides customers with the ability to initiate transfers via its website and mobile app, as well as track transactions in real time.