Geode Capital Management LLC Grows Position in TransUnion (NYSE:TRU)

Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in TransUnion (NYSE:TRU) by 1.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,085,485 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 58,551 shares during the quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC owned approximately 1.58% of TransUnion worth $285,522,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its position in TransUnion by 82.1% in the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 428 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 193 shares during the last quarter. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in shares of TransUnion in the fourth quarter valued at about $44,000. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. acquired a new stake in shares of TransUnion during the fourth quarter worth about $47,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of TransUnion during the fourth quarter worth about $49,000. Finally, Kestra Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of TransUnion during the fourth quarter worth about $51,000.

TransUnion Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:TRU opened at $71.10 on Friday. TransUnion has a 12 month low of $66.07 and a 12 month high of $113.17. The firm has a market capitalization of $13.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 48.70, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.70. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $90.11 and its 200-day simple moving average is $96.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18, a current ratio of 1.70 and a quick ratio of 1.70.

TransUnion (NYSE:TRU) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The business services provider reported $0.83 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.97 by ($0.14). TransUnion had a net margin of 6.80% and a return on equity of 15.85%. The business had revenue of $1.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.03 billion. As a group, equities analysts forecast that TransUnion will post 3.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

TransUnion Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 27th were issued a $0.115 dividend. This represents a $0.46 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.65%. This is a positive change from TransUnion’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.11. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 27th. TransUnion’s dividend payout ratio is 31.51%.

TransUnion announced that its board has approved a share repurchase program on Thursday, February 13th that permits the company to buyback $500.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization permits the business services provider to purchase up to 2.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have weighed in on TRU shares. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of TransUnion in a research report on Friday, February 14th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of TransUnion from $102.00 to $104.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Barclays cut their price objective on shares of TransUnion from $105.00 to $85.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on shares of TransUnion from $135.00 to $126.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 10th. Finally, William Blair reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of TransUnion in a report on Monday, March 24th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, TransUnion presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $112.54.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Venkat Achanta sold 1,821 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $95.74, for a total value of $174,342.54. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 105,443 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,095,112.82. This trade represents a 1.70 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Steven M. Chaouki sold 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $95.95, for a total transaction of $95,950.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 58,488 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,611,923.60. This trade represents a 1.68 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 4,021 shares of company stock worth $372,751. 0.25% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.