Western Union Company (WU)

Several events have influenced Western Union's stock in the past six months. The company is scheduled to release its fourth quarter and full-year 2025 results on February 20, 2026. Recent institutional activities include Allianz Asset Management GmbH purchasing over 2.1 million shares and Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd holding a significant stake. Western Union's valuation was in focus due to earnings expectations and a new AI center in Hyderabad. The stock saw an upgrade from Cantor Fitzgerald and increased trading in call options. Keefe Bruyette lifted Western Union's target in a payments sector update, and the stock price crossed above its 200-day moving average. At the 2025 Investor Day, Western Union outlined a strategy to move "beyond remittances" into a broader financial services platform. The company reported Q3 CY2025 revenue of $1.03 billion, a 23.5% increase in pre-tax profit, and an adjusted EPS that beat estimates by 9.5%. Western Union is in the process of acquiring International Money Express, and management anticipates 20% revenue growth between 2026 and 2028. The stock experienced a dip on December 22, 2025, as the broader market gained.

Demand for Western Union's products and services exhibits seasonality. Remittance flows typically surge in the final months of the year, particularly in anticipation of the Lunar New Year. The fiscal first quarter is generally a slower period due to holiday timing.

The Western Union Company is a multinational financial services corporation specializing in money movement and payment services globally. Its core business is segmented into Consumer Money Transfer and Consumer Services. The company facilitates international money transfers through various channels and offers business solutions, bill payment services, money orders, retail foreign exchange services, prepaid cards, lending partnerships, and digital wallets. Western Union is transitioning into a digital-first payments company and expanding into the stablecoin space.

Western Union operates in over 200 countries and territories, supporting transactions in over 130 currencies. It maintains a vast retail network worldwide, crucial for cash-based transactions. The company holds a strong market position in corridors from the U.S. to Latin America and the Middle East, as well as within the European and African money transfer industries. Payouts are available into billions of bank accounts and millions of digital wallets and cards globally, but faces relative weakness and intense competition in the Asia-Pacific corridor.

Western Union has maintained an exceptional brand reputation, particularly for reliability and trust in the international money transfer sector. The company is recognized for its commitment to security and has been actively transforming its business with ongoing digital payment solutions. This includes expanding into various consumer services and venturing into the stablecoin space. No specific negative events significantly impacting Western Union's overall brand reputation were prominently reported in the past year.

The ownership structure of Western Union is predominantly institutional, with approximately 56.47% of the company's stock held by institutional investors. Insiders own about 0.92%, and public companies and individual investors account for 42.61%. Major institutional owners include The Vanguard Group, Inc., BlackRock, Inc., Schroder Investment Management Group, State Street Corp, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc, Royal Bank Of Canada, AQR Capital Management, LLC, and LSV Asset Management. Vanguard Group alone owned over 33 million shares as of Q3 2025.