Jim Trippon, CPA

Yes, Western Union (NYSE: WU) is a financial services company, but this is no investment bank or brokerage house or traditional money center bank.

Western Union's bread and butter is selling money orders and offering money transfer services to its clients.

And while the company hasn't posted the gains offered by Bank of America (NYSE: BAC) or JPMorgan Chase (NYSE: JPM) in the past year, Western Union shares are still up nearly 50% in that time.

The Colorado-based company isn't done showing its shareholders the money. Western Union said it bill boost its quarterly dividend by 50% to 6 cents a share from 4 cents.

The company is also "double dipping" by announcing a $1 billion share repurchase plan that will last three years. The dividend increase will cost Western Union $140 million a year.

Western Union began paying a dividend in the fourth quarter of 2006 and the payout has risen steadily from the payout of just a penny share offered back then.