Positioning no disclosures inside 60 days, left as found
Options no verdict drawn today, left as found
Ethical does not pass the values gate
Price6.03 USD
Fair value8.50
Ethical score30.0/100
Our investment reviews on this name
2026-10-02Read Distribution6.03+0.0% to today
2026-09-17Read Markdown7.18-16.0% to today ✓
2026-08-18Read Distribution7.31-17.5% to today ✓
2026-07-02Read Markdown7.55-20.1% to today ✓
Our analytic regime reads on this name, dated and marked against the screened price. Small sample per name, and separate from the daily-framework accuracy on the Track Record page.
The Western Union Company holds its Distribution at $6.03. The statistical read favours the sellers, held for 127 days.
As held on the ledger · 2026-09-24
Phase
Distribution · caution
Quantitative state
The statistical read favours the sellers, held for 127 days
Price at the screen
$6.03
Valuation
4.86 trailing · 3.99 forward price to earnings
Values screen
FAIL· score 30.0
Beta
0.54
The Workings
Five Screens, Shown in Full
Does not pass. Prohibited keyword in sector/industry: financial services
Test
Figure
Limit
What it means
Status
Business activity
Excluded
Core business clean
Prohibited keyword in sector/industry: financial services
Fail
Debt load
Excluded
Below 33%
Interest-bearing debt is of its assets, above the one-third ceiling the screen allows.
Fail
Interest-bearing cash
Excluded
Below 33%
Interest-bearing cash and securities are of assets, above the one-third limit.
Fail
Receivables
Excluded
Below 49%
Money owed to the company is of assets, above the 49% limit.
Fail
Revenue purity
Excluded
Below 5%
of revenue comes from non-compliant sources, over the 5% line.
Fail
Five checks adapted from AAOIFI screening standards: business activity plus four balance-sheet ratios. All five must pass for ethical clearance. Every figure is arithmetic on public accounts, not judgement.
The Ethical Read
Why It Falls Short, in Plain English
The Western Union does not clear the screen at the business-activity stage. It operates in conventional financial services, which the screen treats as interest-based, so the financial ratios are not the deciding factor here.
Read as at 2026-10-04. It updates when the underlying figures move, and past reads are kept below.
The Conscience Overlay
Conscience flag · AFSC Investigate
The quantitative screen above is arithmetic. Separately, community boycott lists cite this company: Documented on AFSC Investigate. The desk records that flag here without folding it into the verdict: the screen measures the balance sheet, the overlay informs the conscience, and they are different judgements that belong to different owners. The second one is yours.
Fair value range in USD, drawn from the 2026-09-24 screen. The gold marker is the market price at the same screen. A 41.0% margin of safety to the base estimate.
Third-party analyst targets: 14 covering, consensus None. The average target sits +16% from the screen price.
Reading the gap · Both our model and the analysts see meaningful upside from here.
Price History & Projections
Where it has been, where the models see it going. History from market close data; projection points are our fair-value estimates and third-party analyst targets, dated to the 2026-09-24 screen.
Fair value and rating are our own model estimates; the Street's range reflects third-party analyst estimates. Analysis, not advice.
The Business, in Plain Words
Cash wires home look cheap but we pass
Every month migrant workers queue at Western Union counters from Manila to Mexico City to send wages back home. The business still clears those transfers, yet revenue sits flat and fourteen analysts rate the shares underperform with a median target of eight dollars against the current price near nine.
We pass outright. The ethical screen rejects financial services on principle, regardless of a forward multiple of 4.6 times, an 11 percent profit margin or a 48 percent return on equity that flatters the balance sheet. Opportunity rating stays at none.
The low multiple reflects zero growth and a sector we already exclude. That is the screen doing its job, not a bargain hiding in plain sight. Analysis, not advice.
The risks · The things to watch: it's a small-cap, so the share price can swing harder than the market; it carries a real debt load, which raises the stakes if revenue slips.
Plain-English interpretation of our own screen data. Analysis, not advice.
Where & How to Trade
WU trades on the NYSE. As a listed security it is accessible through almost any international broker offering its home market. New to this, or investing from abroad? Our guide to accessing global markets covers brokers, currencies and the practical steps.
The framework has shifted from markdown to distribution since the last review. Smart money appears to be selling into strength. Institutional holders may be rotating out. Price has moved down 16.0% since our last review. Ethical screening: FAIL. This security does not pass our values-based screening criteria. The risk-adjusted return profile shows negative risk-adjusted returns. Our composite framework grades it D, carrying a low risk profile. Technically it is holding around 6% above its long-term trend line with momentum reading oversold. Over the past year the shares are down 12%. Our forward projection puts the odds of a 10% gain over the next month near 12%. The street (13 analysts) rates it underperform, with a mean price target of $9. Since the last review it its composite score rose.
2026-09-17Markdown · changed$7.18-1.8%Entry 5
The framework has shifted from distribution to markdown since the last review. Price is trending lower. Sellers are in control and the prior trend has reversed. Price has moved down 1.8% since our last review. Ethical screening: FAIL. This security does not pass our values-based screening criteria. The risk-adjusted return profile shows negative risk-adjusted returns. Our composite framework grades it D, carrying a low risk profile. Technically it is holding around 6% above its long-term trend line with momentum reading oversold. Over the past year the shares are down 12%. Our forward projection puts the odds of a 10% gain over the next month near 12%. The street (13 analysts) rates it underperform, with a mean price target of $9.
2026-08-18Distribution · changed$7.31-3.2%Entry 4
The framework has shifted from markdown to distribution since the last review. Smart money appears to be selling into strength. Institutional holders may be rotating out. Price has moved down 3.2% since our last review. Ethical screening: FAIL. This security does not pass our values-based screening criteria. The risk-adjusted return profile shows negative risk-adjusted returns. Our composite framework grades it D, carrying a low risk profile. Technically it is holding around 6% above its long-term trend line with momentum reading oversold. Over the past year the shares are down 12%. Our forward projection puts the odds of a 10% gain over the next month near 12%. The street (13 analysts) rates it underperform, with a mean price target of $9.
2026-07-18Markdown$7.55+0.0%Entry 3
The framework reads markdown. Price is trending lower. Sellers are in control and the prior trend has reversed. Price has moved down 0.0% since our last review. Ethical screening: FAIL. This security does not pass our values-based screening criteria. The risk-adjusted return profile shows negative risk-adjusted returns. Our composite framework grades it D, carrying a low risk profile. Technically it is holding around 6% above its long-term trend line with momentum reading oversold. Over the past year the shares are down 12%. Our forward projection puts the odds of a 10% gain over the next month near 12%. The street (13 analysts) rates it underperform, with a mean price target of $9.
2026-07-03Markdown$7.55+0.0%Entry 2
The framework reads markdown. Price is trending lower. Sellers are in control and the prior trend has reversed. Price has moved down 0.0% since our last review. Ethical screening: FAIL. This security does not pass our values-based screening criteria. The risk-adjusted return profile shows negative risk-adjusted returns.
2026-07-02Markdown$7.55Entry 1
The framework reads markdown. Price is trending lower. Sellers are in control and the prior trend has reversed. Ethical screening: FAIL. This security does not pass our values-based screening criteria. The risk-adjusted return profile shows negative risk-adjusted returns.
Each entry above was written on its date, before the outcome. A journal you can prune is not a journal.