Wilson Asset Management International PTY Ltd. Sells 11,427 Shares of TransUnion (NYSE:TRU)

Wilson Asset Management International PTY Ltd. reduced its stake in TransUnion (NYSE:TRU) by 4.9% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 220,543 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 11,427 shares during the quarter. TransUnion accounts for 5.3% of Wilson Asset Management International PTY Ltd.’s portfolio, making the stock its 4th largest position. Wilson Asset Management International PTY Ltd.’s holdings in TransUnion were worth $20,447,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in TRU. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its position in shares of TransUnion by 17.4% in the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 19,180,562 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,008,205,000 after purchasing an additional 2,840,800 shares during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp increased its position in shares of TransUnion by 7.4% in the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 5,139,607 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $476,493,000 after purchasing an additional 356,306 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC increased its position in shares of TransUnion by 307.7% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 4,540,896 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $475,432,000 after purchasing an additional 3,427,199 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its position in shares of TransUnion by 16.8% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,426,510 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $463,456,000 after purchasing an additional 635,581 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC increased its position in shares of TransUnion by 2.4% in the 3rd quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 3,154,262 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $330,251,000 after purchasing an additional 75,410 shares during the last quarter.

TransUnion Stock Up 1.7 %

TRU stock opened at $82.23 on Wednesday. TransUnion has a one year low of $66.07 and a one year high of $113.17. The stock has a market capitalization of $16.04 billion, a PE ratio of 56.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18, a quick ratio of 1.70 and a current ratio of 1.70. The company has a fifty day moving average of $93.74 and a 200-day moving average of $98.29.

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

TransUnion declared that its board has authorized a stock buyback plan on Thursday, February 13th that allows the company to buyback $500.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization allows the business services provider to repurchase up to 2.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

TransUnion Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 27th will be issued a $0.115 dividend. This represents a $0.46 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.56%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 27th. This is an increase from TransUnion’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.11. TransUnion’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 31.51%.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Steven M. Chaouki sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $93.60, for a total value of $93,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 59,488 shares in the company, valued at $5,568,076.80. This trade represents a 1.65 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Venkat Achanta sold 1,821 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the executive vice president now owns 105,443 shares of the company’s stock, 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. 0.22% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

TRU has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “hold” rating on shares of TransUnion in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on shares of TransUnion from $130.00 to $127.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Oppenheimer lowered their target price on shares of TransUnion from $115.00 to $112.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. William Blair restated an “outperform” rating on shares of TransUnion in a report on Friday, February 14th. Finally, UBS Group upped their target price on shares of TransUnion from $102.00 to $104.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, TransUnion presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $111.64.

TransUnion 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.