Western Union Co
🔔 Watch stock
Assessment
Our Rating
A journalistic assessment by our editorial team at the time of the deep dive — it rates the company, not the entry point. Not investment advice and not a solicitation to buy or sell.
The business works in principle, but one material question is open. As long as it stays open, our findings do not carry a quality verdict.
Why this colour
Yellow here stands for an open operational question, not for a risk to the substance. The substance is documented: 2025 produced $757.3 million of operating income and $543.7 million of operating cash flow, equity is positive at $914.7 million, first-half 2026 interest expense was covered a good three times, there is no going-concern paragraph and no listing risk. What is open is the business itself: the core has been shrinking for years, the operating margin fell within two quarters from 19 to 20 percent down to 13 percent, revenue per transfer is falling in the digital business, and the payout has not been fully earned for three years — 72 percent covered in 2025, 58 percent in the first half of 2026. On top of that sits a turnaround that hangs on a single regulatory decision. The stock is cheap in any case — a price-to-earnings ratio in the region of 5 to 6 — but that is a price argument and does not drive this rating. It would turn red only if interest coverage or equity gave way; it would turn green once core revenue grows again and the payout is covered by the business itself. The decision is yours.
What the thesis turns on
Assessment: Opportunities & Risks
Western Union is the dividend trap in pure form: a payout network unlike any other in the world, with roughly 360,000 locations, which still generated $757.3 million of operating income in 2025 — and at the same time a core business whose revenue fell from $4,005.0 million to $3,507.4 million, a payout that exceeded free cash flow in every year (2025: $543.6 million against $392.9 million), and company guidance that collapsed within three months from $1.75 to $1.85 down to $1.25 to $1.35 per share. The projected 2026 growth is not earned but bought: it assumes the Intermex acquisition closes on September 1, 2026, and that deal's final approval has been outstanding since August 2025. Not investment advice.
Earning power
The business earns real money: $757.3 million of operating income and $543.7 million of operating cash flow in 2025, against a market value in the region of two billion dollars (data as of August 1, 2026). Even in the weak first half of 2026 it produced $255.1 million of operating income and $213.9 million of operating cash flow.
Core revenue trend
Money-transfer segment revenue fell from $4,005.0 million (2023) through $3,798.0 million (2024) to $3,507.4 million (2025), with North America alone down 11 percent in 2025. The growing Consumer Services segment ($543.3 million in 2025) is too small to offset the decline.
Shareholder payout
Dividends and buybacks exceeded free cash flow in every year from 2023 through 2025 (2025: $543.6 million against $392.9 million, a coverage ratio of 72 percent); in the first half of 2026, $216.8 million of payout met $125.7 million. Cash fell from $1,234.4 million to $919.8 million and the accumulated deficit widened from $11.5 million to $83.8 million.
Margin trend
The GAAP operating margin fell from 19 to 20 percent across the 2025 quarters to 13 percent in the first and second quarters of 2026. In the digital business volume is growing far faster than revenue — second quarter of 2026: up 25 percent transactions against up 7 percent revenue, meaning roughly 14 percent less revenue per transfer.
Guidance and acquisition
Between April 24 and July 30, 2026, the company cut its own 2026 adjusted earnings guidance from $1.75 to $1.85 down to $1.25 to $1.35 per share and stopped giving a GAAP figure. The projected revenue growth assumes the Intermex acquisition closes on September 1, 2026 — its final approval has been outstanding since August 10, 2025.
Balance sheet and funding
As of June 30, 2026, borrowings of $2,697.2 million stood against equity of $914.7 million; first-half interest expense of $75.7 million was covered a good three times by $255.1 million of operating income. An undrawn $800.0 million credit commitment stands ready for the acquisition, with a draw period ending November 10, 2026.
Worth Noting
Western Union reached our research list through the SEC filing calendar: on July 30, 2026, the quarterly report (10-Q) as of June 30, 2026, and the earnings release filed as Exhibit 99.1 to a current report (8-K) arrived on the same day. The reduced guidance appears only in Exhibit 99.1, not in the quarterly report.
Data basis: annual figures as of December 31, 2025, from the annual report (10-K); interim figures as of June 30, 2026, from the quarterly report (10-Q); guidance and quarterly metrics as of July 30, 2026; market value and analyst consensus as of August 1, 2026. Market value is deliberately used only as an order of magnitude: the share count of 311,878,981 (as of July 22, 2026) comes from the quarterly report cover page, but no reliable share price appears in any filing — the only price documented there is the June 2026 buyback average of $7.71, and that is not a price anchor.
Do not confuse the two $800 million facilities: they are separate agreements. The already-drawn term loan facility (maturing December 13, 2027) sits on the balance sheet; the credit commitment for the Intermex acquisition (the delayed draw term loan facility dated January 9, 2026) is undrawn so far and must be taken up by November 10, 2026.
Stock Watch
This analysis is as of August 26, 2026. Stock Watch will tell you what's changed at WU since then.
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Price history
Chart
Interactive price chart (TradingView).
52-week range: 6.40 $ to 10.30 $ · Last price: 6.50 $ (As of: September 17, 2026)
Key figures
Key figures at a glance
Every figure we hold for this stock, grouped by topic. The question mark next to a label explains what the number means.
Basics
Performance
Technical Indicators
Calculated from the price history · as of 09/18/2026
Valuation
Profitability
Balance Sheet & Safety
Growth
Dividend
Quality & Screener
Comparison
Industry comparison
The stock alongside the largest companies in the same group. The median row is the middle value of the companies shown above — not of the whole industry.
Industry: Credit Services
| Company | Market cap ($B) | P/E | EV/EBITDA | Gross Margin % | EBIT Margin % | Sales Growth (Year) % | Perf. 1Y % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Western Union Co WU | 2.1 | 5.0 | 2.4 | 35.1 | 12.5 | -4.0 | -12.0 |
| Visa Inc. Class A V | 699.4 | 33.2 | 24.3 | 97.7 | 67.4 | 11.3 | 7.7 |
| Mastercard Inc MA | 500.7 | 33.9 | 23.1 | 100.0 | 60.8 | 16.4 | -4.9 |
| American Express Company AXP | 213.1 | 19.5 | 0.0 | 62.3 | 21.3 | 8.4 | -6.4 |
| Capital One Financial Corporation COF | 124.4 | 62.2 | 0.0 | 100.0 | 28.6 | 28.4 | -9.1 |
| PayPal Holdings Inc PYPL | 45.7 | 10.1 | 6.6 | 40.5 | 17.0 | 4.3 | -20.3 |
| Synchrony Financial SYF | 25.3 | 7.7 | 0.0 | 100.0 | 48.0 | -7.9 | 2.1 |
| Affirm Holdings Inc AFRM | 23.7 | 63.7 | 25.7 | 48.9 | 8.5 | 38.8 | -22.3 |
| SoFi Technologies Inc. SOFI | 21.0 | 35.7 | 0.0 | 83.7 | 18.3 | 82.6 | -38.4 |
| Median of companies shown | 45.7 | 33.2 | 2.4 | 83.7 | 21.3 | 11.3 | -9.1 |
Based on the most recently reported figures. Only stocks from the same trading venue are lined up, so the market caps are counted in one currency. Compare in a chart →
Fiscal years
Annual Figures
Fiscal years from the audited annual reports, oldest first. EBIT is the operating profit before interest and taxes; total assets are everything the company owns.
Revenue, operating income and net income per fiscal year $M
Revenue Operating income Net income
| Fiscal Year | Revenue ($M) | EBIT ($M) | Net Income ($M) | EPS ($) | Operating Cash Flow ($M) | Equity ($M) | Total Assets ($M) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 5,423 | 484 | 253 | 0.51 | 1,042 | 902 | 9,420 |
| 2017 | 5,524 | 473 | -557 | -1.19 | 742 | -491 | 9,231 |
| 2018 | 5,590 | 1,122 | 852 | 1.87 | 821 | -310 | 8,997 |
| 2019 | 5,292 | 934 | 1,058 | 2.46 | 915 | -40 | 8,759 |
| 2020 | 4,835 | 967 | 744 | 1.79 | 878 | 187 | 9,496 |
| 2021 | 5,071 | 1,123 | 806 | 1.97 | 1,045 | 356 | 8,824 |
| 2022 | 4,476 | 885 | 911 | 2.34 | 582 | 478 | 8,496 |
| 2023 | 4,357 | 818 | 626 | 1.68 | 783 | 479 | 8,199 |
| 2024 | 4,210 | 726 | 934 | 2.74 | 406 | 969 | 8,371 |
| 2025 | 4,041 | 784 | 500 | 1.53 | 544 | 958 | 8,306 |
Quarters
Quarterly Figures
Each bar is one quarter, the last one is the most recent. Use the switch to step through the individual figures.
Revenue & Profit
Cash Flow
Balance Sheet
Margins
Per Share
Click the chart or tab into it, then use ← and → to step through the periods.
None of the selected stocks reports this metric. Pick another metric or switch between annual and quarterly.
· Total · per year
These companies report in different currencies — switch on “Indexed” or pick a margin for a fair comparison.
The figures could not be loaded right now.
Source: fundamental data
| Quarter | EPS (Earnings Per Share) | EPS YoY (%) | Sales ($M) | Sales YoY (%) | Net Margin (%) | OCF ($M) | FCF ($M) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024: Q4 | 1.13 | 221.50 | 1,058 | 0.60 | 36.40 | 134 | 95 |
| 2025: Q1 | 0.36 | -11.80 | 984 | -6.20 | 12.60 | 148 | 124 |
| 2025: Q2 | 0.37 | -10.80 | 1,026 | -3.80 | 11.90 | 0 | -8 |
| 2025: Q3 | 0.42 | -45.80 | 1,033 | -0.30 | 13.50 | 260 | 171 |
| 2025: Q4 | 0.36 | -68.30 | 1,006 | -4.90 | 11.40 | 135 | 106 |
| 2026: Q1 | 0.20 | -43.90 | 983 | -0.10 | 6.60 | 109 | 62 |
| 2026: Q2 | 0.24 | -35.10 | 1,013 | -1.30 | 7.60 | 105 | 95 |
What Do These Terms Mean?
- EPS (Earnings Per Share):
- Quarterly profit divided by the total share count — how much of the profit works out to a single share.
- YoY (Year over Year):
- Change versus the same quarter a year ago — this is how you compare without seasonal distortion (e.g. the holiday shopping season).
- Sales:
- All revenue for the quarter, before any costs are deducted — the top line of the income statement.
- Net Margin:
- What percentage of sales is left over as profit in the end. Negative means the company is posting a loss.
- OCF (Operating Cash Flow):
- The cash that actually flows into the till from the core business during the quarter — harder to dress up than book profit.
- FCF (Free Cash Flow):
- Operating cash flow minus capital expenditures — the money that's genuinely free to use, say for paying down debt, buybacks, or dividends.
Screening
Appears in These Scanners
This stock currently matches 9 of our scanner strategies — each hit links to the scanner.
Quality & Balance Sheet
- CEO Buys
- Insider Buying (Net)
- Institutional + Insiders Building Positions
- Institutions + CEO Buying
- Pros 80%
Dividends
Research
Only genuine hits from verified scanners count; pure ranking metrics (P/E, P/S, and similar, which just sort the whole universe) don't count as a hit. View all scanners
Outlook
Analysts & Price Target
Combined picture of the price targets and recommendations of every analyst covering the stock. Price targets are expectations for the next 12 months, not promises — and they often follow the price rather than predict it.
Distribution of Recommendations
Estimates by Fiscal Year
| Fiscal Year | EPS Estimate ($) | EPS Range ($) | Revenue Estimate ($M) | Expected Growth | Analysts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 12/31/2026 | 1.29 | 1.25 – 1.33 | 4,128 | -26.1% | 18 |
| 12/31/2027 | 1.51 | 1.30 – 1.66 | 4,358 | 16.9% | 18 |
Average of the analyst estimates for the coming fiscal years. The range shows how far the most optimistic and the most cautious estimate sit apart — the wider it is, the less certain the expectation.
Valuation
What is priced in?
Instead of guessing what the stock is worth, we turn the question around: what free cash flow growth has to happen for today’s market value to add up? The assumptions behind it can be moved.
Today’s market value implies roughly -11.8% growth in free cash flow per year over ten years (assumptions: discount rate 10.0%, terminal growth 2.5%).
| Free cash flow (last twelve months) | $402.6M |
|---|---|
| Market cap | $2.05B |
| Free cash flow in year ten | $114.4M |
| Terminal value as a share of market value | 29.4% |
For comparison: over the past five years free cash flow shrank by 11.4% per year.
It shows which assumption is built into today’s price, not whether that assumption will hold. Every assumption can be changed with the sliders; the figures move with them.
A simplified model calculation — not a forecast and not a recommendation.
AI classification
AI Rating
Western Union setzt künstliche Intelligenz, maschinelles Lernen und große Sprachmodelle laut Geschäftsbericht 10-K für 2025 operativ für Transaktionsüberwachung, Betrugserkennung, Identitätsprüfung sowie Geldwäsche- und Kundenprüfung ein — KI ist dort Werkzeug der Abwicklung, nicht Umsatzquelle. Die Berichte nennen KI zusätzlich als Risiko (KI-gestützter Betrug, Wettbewerbsnachteil), aber nicht als Bedrohung des Geschäftsmodells selbst.
View the full file — quotes, sources, reviewed filings
„Our growing reliance on artificial intelligence for transaction monitoring, fraud detection, and identity verification exposes us to increased regulatory scrutiny, operational risks, and potential disruptions in cross-border funds transfers, including the risk of theft of proprietary, confidential or personal information."
Unsere wachsende Abhängigkeit von künstlicher Intelligenz bei Transaktionsüberwachung, Betrugserkennung und Identitätsprüfung setzt uns verstärkter Aufsichtskontrolle, betrieblichen Risiken und möglichen Störungen im grenzüberschreitenden Zahlungsverkehr aus, einschließlich des Risikos des Diebstahls geschützter, vertraulicher oder personenbezogener Daten.
10-K · 2026-02-20 · View SEC filing
„The expanding application of AI, machine learning, and large language models to automate and optimize our operations—including AML/CFT (Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Financing of Terrorism, together “AML”) and KYC screening—introduces additional risks."
Der zunehmende Einsatz von KI, maschinellem Lernen und großen Sprachmodellen zur Automatisierung und Optimierung unserer Abläufe — einschließlich der Prüfung auf Geldwäsche und Terrorismusfinanzierung („AML“) sowie der Kundenidentifizierung (KYC) — bringt zusätzliche Risiken mit sich.
10-K · 2026-02-20 · View SEC filing
„the development, deployment, and use of artificial intelligence (“AI”), machine learning, and automated decision-making technologies in our operations, including risks relating to system performance, data quality, regulatory compliance, bias, or unintended outcomes"
die Entwicklung, Einführung und Nutzung von künstlicher Intelligenz („KI“), maschinellem Lernen und automatisierten Entscheidungstechnologien in unseren Abläufen, einschließlich Risiken aus Systemleistung, Datenqualität, regulatorischer Einhaltung, Verzerrungen oder unbeabsichtigten Ergebnissen
10-Q · 2026-07-30 · View SEC filing
„Additionally, advances in AI and machine learning may enable increasingly sophisticated, automated, and difficult-to-detect fraudulent activity, which could outpace our fraud prevention and detection capabilities and increase fraud losses."
Darüber hinaus können Fortschritte bei KI und maschinellem Lernen zunehmend ausgefeilte, automatisierte und schwer erkennbare Betrugsaktivitäten ermöglichen, die unsere Fähigkeiten zur Betrugsprävention und -erkennung überholen und die Betrugsverluste erhöhen könnten.
10-K · 2026-02-20 · View SEC filing
Filings Reviewed: 10-Q 2026-07-30 · 10-Q 2026-04-24 · 10-K 2026-02-20 · 10-Q 2025-10-27 · 10-Q 2025-07-28 · 10-K 2025-02-20
Rated on August 2, 2026 · How the Rating Is Built
Growth
Growth Score
Ten checks against the annual reports — each one passed counts a point.
- Revenue grows by more than 15% a year over three years -3.4%
- More than 10% revenue growth is expected for the coming year 4.7%
- Share count grows by less than 3% a year -5.5%
- Revenue growth plus cash-flow margin add up to at least 40 ("Rule of 40") 5.7%
- Gross margin at 40% or higher and without meaningful erosion 28.7%
- Goodwill from acquisitions does not grow faster than revenue 25.3%
- Net debt below twice EBITDA 0.0 x EBITDA
- Operating cash flow covers the profits of the last three years -327 m
- Return on capital at 15% or higher, or up versus two years ago 20.2%
- Insiders hold at least 10% or are net buyers 0.9%
A criterion without figures counts neither as passed nor as failed; a score is only produced from 7 judgeable criteria upwards. Source: fundamental data. All ten criteria in detail
Quality check
AAQS
6/10The AAQS (AlleAktien Quality Score) checks 10 quality criteria on growth, profitability, and balance-sheet strength — per the methodology developed and published by AlleAktien, calculated by us from our own fundamental data. A stock counts as a quality stock from 9 out of 10 points. Where a company has a shorter listing history, we calculate over the fiscal years available (at least five).
- Sales growth 10Y > 5% -3.2%
- Exp. sales growth 3Y > 5% 3.8%
- EBIT growth 10Y > 5% 5.5%
- Exp. EBIT growth 3Y > 5% -0.4%
- Net debt < 4x EBIT 0.0x
- EBIT positive, 10Y straight 10
- Max. EBIT decline < 50% 35.4%
- Return on equity > 15% –
- ROCE > 15% 20.2%
- Expected return > 10% 18.6%
View stocks with the full AAQS score · Read the methodology at AlleAktien
Source: fundamental data
Insiders
Insider Transactions
Reportable transactions by officers and major shareholders from SEC Form 4 filings. "Other" includes things like stock grants and option exercises without a buy/sell character.
| Date | Person | Role | Type | Shares | Price | Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 8, 2026 | Hawksworth Benjamin Scott | Chief Operating Officer | Other | 8,569 | 7.00 | 59,983 |
The company
About the Company
The Western Union Company bietet Geldtransfer-Zahlungen und digitale Finanzdienstleistungen in den USA und international an. Sie ist in zwei Segmenten tätig: Consumer Money Transfer und Consumer Services.
- CEO Insider Trades (12 Mo.)
- buying own stock
- Employees
- 9,600
- Headquarters
- Denver, CO
- Address
- 7001 East Belleview Avenue, 80237 Denver, United States
- Phone
- 866 405 5012
- Website
- westernunion.com
- IPO Date
- 10/02/2006
- ISIN
- US9598021098
Management
| Name | Title | Birth Year |
|---|---|---|
| Devin B. McGranahan | President, CEO & Director | 1970 |
| Matthew Cagwin | Executive VP & CFO | 1975 |
| Benjamin Hawksworth | Executive VP & COO | 1978 |
| Benjamin Carlton Adams | Executive VP, Chief Legal Officer & Corporate Secretary | 1972 |
| Giovanni Angelini | President of Europe, Africa & MEPA | 1970 |
| Barry D. Cooper | Chief Accounting Officer & Controller | 1967 |
| Tom Hadley | Head of Investor Relations | – |
| Cherie Axelrod | Executive VP and Chief Risk & Compliance Officer | 1967 |
| Bob Rupczynski | Chief Marketing Officer | – |
| Karen Whalen | Chief People Officer | – |
Executives per the latest required filings; titles kept in their original language. Source: fundamental data.
Filings
Company Filings (8-K)
An 8-K is the filing a US company must use to disclose material events immediately — takeovers, changes at the top, major contracts or payment troubles, for instance. The links open the original document at the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
- 08/14/2026 Western Union CO (WU): Regulation FD Disclosure; Other Events; Financial Statements and Exhibits SEC ↗
- 07/30/2026 Western Union CO (WU): Results of Operations and Financial Condition; Financial Statements and Exhibits SEC ↗
- 07/23/2026 Western Union CO (WU): Departure of Directors or Certain Officers; Election of Directors; Appointment of Certain Officers: Compensatory Arrangements of Certain Officers; Financial Statements and Exhibits SEC ↗
Data as of: September 17, 2026 · Source: fundamental data & SEC filings (annual and quarterly reports, 10-K/10-Q)
Note: pure fact-based analysis, not investment advice and not a solicitation to buy or sell. All figures without guarantee.