Q1 EPS Estimates for Western Union Lowered by Zacks Research

The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU) – Equities researchers at Zacks Research reduced their Q1 2025 EPS estimates for shares of Western Union in a research note issued on Monday, February 17th. Zacks Research analyst K. Dey now forecasts that the credit services provider will earn $0.43 per share for the quarter, down from their prior forecast of $0.45. The consensus estimate for Western Union’s current full-year earnings is $1.80 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Western Union’s Q2 2025 earnings at $0.44 EPS, Q3 2025 earnings at $0.45 EPS, Q4 2025 earnings at $0.45 EPS, Q1 2026 earnings at $0.45 EPS, Q2 2026 earnings at $0.46 EPS, Q3 2026 earnings at $0.47 EPS, Q4 2026 earnings at $0.51 EPS, FY2026 earnings at $1.89 EPS and FY2027 earnings at $1.98 EPS.

Western Union (NYSE:WU) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The credit services provider reported $0.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.42 by ($0.02). Western Union had a net margin of 22.19% and a return on equity of 96.90%.

Other equities analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Western Union from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Susquehanna decreased their target price on shares of Western Union from $13.00 to $12.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price target on shares of Western Union from $13.00 to $12.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, December 9th. Barclays cut their price target on shares of Western Union from $11.00 to $10.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, December 13th. Finally, JMP Securities reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Western Union in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and nine have issued a hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $12.11.

Western Union Stock Performance

Shares of WU opened at $10.84 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $10.55 and a 200 day moving average price of $11.15. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.66 billion, a PE ratio of 3.97, a P/E/G ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a quick ratio of 1.10, a current ratio of 1.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.04. Western Union has a 52-week low of $10.04 and a 52-week high of $14.19.

Institutional Trading of Western Union

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Western Union by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 38,055,661 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $403,390,000 after purchasing an additional 317,711 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its position in shares of Western Union by 18.0% in the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 28,983,265 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $307,224,000 after purchasing an additional 4,426,126 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its position in shares of Western Union by 0.4% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 12,926,192 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $154,209,000 after purchasing an additional 52,081 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Western Union by 4.6% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 12,489,079 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $132,384,000 after purchasing an additional 549,931 shares in the last quarter. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Western Union by 39.0% in the fourth quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 11,206,431 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $118,788,000 after purchasing an additional 3,146,395 shares in the last quarter. 91.81% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Western Union Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be paid a dividend of $0.235 per share. This represents a $0.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 8.67%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 17th. Western Union’s dividend payout ratio is presently 34.43%.

Western Union announced that its board has initiated a share repurchase program on Friday, December 13th that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the credit services provider to repurchase up to 27.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

About Western Union

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.