In the latest close session, Western Union (WU) was down 2.26% at $8.20. The stock trailed the S&P 500, which registered a daily loss of 0.13%. At the same time, the Dow lost 0.27%, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq lost 0.07%.
The stock of money transfer company has fallen by 0.83% in the past month, lagging the Business Services sector's gain of 1.37% and the S&P 500's gain of 2.71%.
Analysts and investors alike will be keeping a close eye on the performance of Western Union in its upcoming earnings disclosure. The company's upcoming EPS is projected at $0.43, signifying a 6.52% drop compared to the same quarter of the previous year. Our most recent consensus estimate is calling for quarterly revenue of $1.02 billion, down 1.39% from the year-ago period.
Looking at the full year, the Zacks Consensus Estimates suggest analysts are expecting earnings of $1.7 per share and revenue of $4.08 billion. These totals would mark changes of -2.3% and -3.06%, respectively, from last year.
Additionally, investors should keep an eye on any recent revisions to analyst forecasts for Western Union. These recent revisions tend to reflect the evolving nature of short-term business trends. Consequently, upward revisions in estimates express analysts' positivity towards the business operations and its ability to generate profits.
Our research shows that these estimate changes are directly correlated with near-term stock prices. To exploit this, we've formed the Zacks Rank, a quantitative model that includes these estimate changes and presents a viable rating system.
Ranging from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), the Zacks Rank system has a proven, outside-audited track record of outperformance, with #1 stocks returning an average of +25% annually since 1988. Over the past month, the Zacks Consensus EPS estimate has remained steady. Currently, Western Union is carrying a Zacks Rank of #4 (Sell).
From a valuation perspective, Western Union is currently exchanging hands at a Forward P/E ratio of 4.94. This expresses a discount compared to the average Forward P/E of 15.9 of its industry.
It's also important to note that WU currently trades at a PEG ratio of 2.88. The PEG ratio is akin to the commonly utilized P/E ratio, but this measure also incorporates the company's anticipated earnings growth rate. The Financial Transaction Services industry had an average PEG ratio of 1.23 as trading concluded yesterday.
The Financial Transaction Services industry is part of the Business Services sector. This industry, currently bearing a Zacks Industry Rank of 71, finds itself in the top 29% echelons of all 250+ industries.
The Zacks Industry Rank is ordered from best to worst in terms of the average Zacks Rank of the individual companies within each of these sectors. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.
Keep in mind to rely on Zacks.com to watch all these stock-impacting metrics, and more, in the succeeding trading sessions.
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The Western Union Company (WU): Free Stock Analysis ReportThis article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).
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