Morgan Stanley Has Lowered Expectations for Willis Towers Watson Public (NASDAQ:WTW) Stock Price

Key Points

• Morgan Stanley cut its price target for Willis Towers Watson (WTW) from $350 to $310 while maintaining an “equal weight” rating, implying roughly 6.7% upside from the reported share price.
• Analyst sentiment remains broadly positive: WTW has a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating from 16 analysts and an average price target of $365.47, despite Morgan Stanley’s more cautious view.
• WTW shares rose 0.8% to $290.54, while the company recently exceeded quarterly earnings and revenue expectations; institutional investors own approximately 93.09% of the stock.

Willis Towers Watson Public (NASDAQ:WTW - Get Free Report) had its price objective lowered by equities researchers at Morgan Stanley from $350.00 to $310.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an "equal weight" rating on the stock. Morgan Stanley's price target suggests a potential upside of 6.70% from the stock's current price.

Several other equities analysts have also recently issued reports on WTW. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 16th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from $316.00 to $385.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. TD Cowen raised their target price on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from $391.00 to $455.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, August 20th. Truist Financial lifted their target price on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from $320.00 to $400.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, July 31st. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from $381.00 to $394.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $365.47.

Willis Towers Watson Public Stock Up 0.8%

NASDAQ WTW traded up $2.43 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $290.54. The stock had a trading volume of 115,312 shares, compared to its average volume of 689,380. Willis Towers Watson Public has a 1 year low of $240.61 and a 1 year high of $352.79. The stock has a market cap of $26.98 billion, a PE ratio of 17.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.83 and a beta of 0.46. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $324.01 and a 200 day moving average price of $292.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 1.68 and a quick ratio of 1.68.

Willis Towers Watson Public (NASDAQ:WTW - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The company reported $3.35 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.12 by $0.23. Willis Towers Watson Public had a return on equity of 22.19% and a net margin of 15.49%.The firm had revenue of $2.47 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.42 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.86 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 9.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that Willis Towers Watson Public will post 19.81 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Willis Towers Watson Public

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 23.4% in the fourth quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,505,195 shares of the company's stock worth $1,151,808,000 after buying an additional 664,202 shares during the period. Baupost Group LLC MA lifted its holdings in Willis Towers Watson Public by 24.7% during the fourth quarter. Baupost Group LLC MA now owns 1,357,601 shares of the company's stock valued at $446,108,000 after purchasing an additional 268,536 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 1.2% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,000,558 shares of the company's stock worth $290,856,000 after purchasing an additional 11,851 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC increased its stake in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 1.0% in the first quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 903,762 shares of the company's stock worth $262,723,000 after purchasing an additional 9,232 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its position in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 6.5% during the 1st quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 505,357 shares of the company's stock valued at $146,907,000 after purchasing an additional 30,887 shares during the period. 93.09% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Willis Towers Watson Public Company Profile

Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company, operating under the name WTW, is a global advisory, broking and solutions company. It helps organizations manage risk, optimize employee benefits and support their workforce strategies, while also providing investment, data and technology services.

WTW's principal activities include insurance brokerage and risk management, health and benefits consulting, retirement and investment advisory services, actuarial consulting, executive compensation and talent management.

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