TransUnion (NYSE:TRU) Short Interest Update

TransUnion (NYSE:TRU) was the target of a large growth in short interest in the month of March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 5,390,000 shares, a growth of 19.5% from the February 28th total of 4,510,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 1,660,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.2 days. Approximately 2.8% of the shares of the stock are short sold.

TransUnion Trading Up 2.1 %

Shares of TransUnion stock traded up $1.80 on Wednesday, hitting $85.66. 1,799,629 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,610,633. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $91.22 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $96.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18, a current ratio of 1.70 and a quick ratio of 1.70. The stock has a market capitalization of $16.71 billion, a PE ratio of 58.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.70. TransUnion has a one year low of $66.07 and a one year high of $113.17.

TransUnion (NYSE:TRU) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The business services provider reported $0.83 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.97 by ($0.14). The company had revenue of $1.04 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.03 billion. TransUnion had a net margin of 6.80% and a return on equity of 15.85%. On average, research analysts expect that TransUnion will post 3.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

TransUnion Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 27th were issued a $0.115 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 27th. This is a positive change from TransUnion’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.11. This represents a $0.46 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.54%. TransUnion’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 31.51%.

TransUnion announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase plan on Thursday, February 13th that permits the company to repurchase $500.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the business services provider to repurchase up to 2.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other TransUnion news, insider Steven M. Chaouki sold 1,000 shares of TransUnion stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $95.95, for a total transaction of $95,950.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 58,488 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,611,923.60. This trade represents a 1.68 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Venkat Achanta sold 1,821 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $95.74, for a total transaction of $174,342.54. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 105,443 shares in the company, valued at $10,095,112.82. This represents a 1.70 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 4,021 shares of company stock worth $383,041 in the last 90 days. 0.25% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its stake in TransUnion by 82.1% in the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 428 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 193 shares in the last quarter. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of TransUnion in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Huntington National Bank lifted its position in shares of TransUnion by 58.7% in the fourth quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 454 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 168 shares in the last quarter. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC acquired a new position in TransUnion during the fourth quarter worth $44,000. Finally, Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. bought a new position in shares of TransUnion in the 4th quarter valued at about $47,000.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently commented on TRU shares. William Blair reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of TransUnion in a report on Monday, March 24th. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on TransUnion from $130.00 to $127.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of TransUnion from $102.00 to $104.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of TransUnion from $135.00 to $126.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 10th. Finally, Oppenheimer reduced their target price on shares of TransUnion from $115.00 to $112.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, TransUnion currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $114.08.

TransUnion Company Profile

TransUnion operates as a global consumer credit reporting agency that provides risk and information solutions. The company operates through U.S. Markets, International, and Consumer Interactive segments. The U.S. Markets segment provides consumer reports, actionable insights, and analytic services to businesses, which uses its services to acquire new customers; assess consumer ability to pay for services; identify cross-selling opportunities; measure and manage debt portfolio risk; collect debt; verify consumer identities; and mitigate fraud risk.