Willis Towers Watson Public (NASDAQ:WTW) Stock Price Target Cut by UBS Group

Key Points

• UBS Group cut Willis Towers Watson’s price target to $395 from $398 while maintaining a “Buy” rating, implying approximately 21.35% upside from the prior close.
• Analyst sentiment remains broadly positive, with 11 Buy ratings and five Holds; MarketBeat lists a “Moderate Buy” consensus and an average target of $365.33.
• WTW recently beat quarterly expectations, reporting $3.63 in EPS versus $3.59 expected and $2.46 billion in revenue, up 7.5% year over year. Institutional investors own approximately 93.09% of the stock.

Willis Towers Watson Public (NASDAQ:WTW - Get Free Report) had its target price dropped by equities research analysts at UBS Group from $398.00 to $395.00 in a report released on Monday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a "buy" rating on the stock. UBS Group's price objective would indicate a potential upside of 21.35% from the stock's previous close.

A number of other research analysts have also recently weighed in on WTW. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from $381.00 to $394.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th. Citigroup downgraded shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and increased their target price for the company from $300.00 to $345.00 in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from $350.00 to $310.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, October 6th. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from $303.00 to $332.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 7th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from $364.00 to $360.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $365.33.

Willis Towers Watson Public Trading Up 0.3%

Shares of Willis Towers Watson Public stock traded up $1.09 on Monday, reaching $325.51. The company had a trading volume of 1,022,366 shares, compared to its average volume of 678,570. The firm has a market cap of $30.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.86, a P/E/G ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 0.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 1.62 and a quick ratio of 1.62. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $315.00 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $297.35. Willis Towers Watson Public has a 1 year low of $240.61 and a 1 year high of $351.51.

Willis Towers Watson Public (NASDAQ:WTW - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 29th. The company reported $3.63 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.59 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $2.46 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.45 billion. Willis Towers Watson Public had a return on equity of 22.65% and a net margin of 15.22%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 7.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $3.07 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Willis Towers Watson Public will post 19.78 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Willis Towers Watson Public

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of WTW. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership increased its holdings in Willis Towers Watson Public by 183.7% during the 1st quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 316,158 shares of the company's stock worth $91,907,000 after purchasing an additional 204,722 shares during the period. Diamond Hill Capital Management LLC Investment Advisor purchased a new stake in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public in the 2nd quarter worth $32,052,000. Renaissance Technologies LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public in the 1st quarter worth $30,058,000. Hsbc Holdings PLC grew its position in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 86.7% during the 1st quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 190,955 shares of the company's stock worth $55,470,000 after buying an additional 88,659 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Westport Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public during the 2nd quarter worth $18,096,000. 93.09% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Willis Towers Watson Public

Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company NASDAQ: WTW is a global advisory, broking and solutions company that helps organizations manage risk, optimize benefits and improve performance. Its clients include corporations, governments, institutions and individuals across a range of industries and markets.

The company's services include insurance brokerage and risk management, reinsurance, employee benefits consulting, retirement and investment advisory, and human capital and organizational consulting.

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