The Western Union Company Earnings Missed Analyst Estimates: Here's What Analysts Are Forecasting Now

Last week, you might have seen that The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU) released its second-quarter result to the market. The early response was not positive, with shares down 7.5% to US$11.67 in the past week. Revenues of US$1.1b were in line with forecasts, although statutory earnings per share (EPS) came in below expectations at US$0.41, missing estimates by 7.1%. This is an important time for investors, as they can track a company's performance in its report, look at what experts are forecasting for next year, and see if there has been any change to expectations for the business. We've gathered the most recent statutory forecasts to see whether the analysts have changed their earnings models, following these results.

View our latest analysis for Western Union

Taking into account the latest results, the 17 analysts covering Western Union provided consensus estimates of US$4.18b revenue in 2024, which would reflect a measurable 2.0% decline over the past 12 months. Statutory per-share earnings are expected to be US$1.69, roughly flat on the last 12 months. In the lead-up to this report, the analysts had been modelling revenues of US$4.19b and earnings per share (EPS) of US$1.72 in 2024. So it's pretty clear that, although the analysts have updated their estimates, there's been no major change in expectations for the business following the latest results.

The analysts reconfirmed their price target of US$13.41, showing that the business is executing well and in line with expectations. There's another way to think about price targets though, and that's to look at the range of price targets put forward by analysts, because a wide range of estimates could suggest a diverse view on possible outcomes for the business. The most optimistic Western Union analyst has a price target of US$18.00 per share, while the most pessimistic values it at US$10.00. As you can see, analysts are not all in agreement on the stock's future, but the range of estimates is still reasonably narrow, which could suggest that the outcome is not totally unpredictable.

These estimates are interesting, but it can be useful to paint some more broad strokes when seeing how forecasts compare, both to the Western Union's past performance and to peers in the same industry. We would also point out that the forecast 4.0% annualised revenue decline to the end of 2024 is roughly in line with the historical trend, which saw revenues shrink 4.5% annually over the past five years Compare this against analyst estimates for companies in the broader industry, which suggest that revenues (in aggregate) are expected to grow 3.3% annually. So it's pretty clear that, while it does have declining revenues, the analysts also expect Western Union to suffer worse than the wider industry.

The Bottom Line

The most important thing to take away is that there's been no major change in sentiment, with the analysts reconfirming that the business is performing in line with their previous earnings per share estimates. Fortunately, the analysts also reconfirmed their revenue estimates, suggesting that it's tracking in line with expectations. Although our data does suggest that Western Union's revenue is expected to perform worse than the wider industry. There was no real change to the consensus price target, suggesting that the intrinsic value of the business has not undergone any major changes with the latest estimates.

Following on from that line of thought, we think that the long-term prospects of the business are much more relevant than next year's earnings. At Simply Wall St, we have a full range of analyst estimates for Western Union going out to 2026, and you can see them free on our platform here..

Don't forget that there may still be risks. For instance, we've identified 1 warning sign for Western Union that you should be aware of.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.

This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team@simplywallst.com