Susquehanna analyst James E Friedman lowered the price target on Western Union Co. (NYSE: WU) to $7.00 (from $8.00) while maintaining a Neutral rating.

The analyst comments "Management's pre-quiet-period commentary indicated that although Americas Retail has stopped getting worse, it is not recovering. We are lowering our Consumer Services to reflect the slowdown, shifting the mix to CMT to remain unchanged. Branded Digital transaction growth continues to outrun revenue because of Middle East mix. The $50 mln cost takeout is a run-rate target for yearend, so most of the benefit lands in 4Q, with the European wallet shutdown helping from 4Q. The Intermex (IMXI) close is the key open item. New York is done, but California is still reviewing, and the Nov. 10 long stop date is approaching. We remain Neutral but trim our price target to $7 on the murky Consumer outlook."