Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich Makes New Investment in Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company $WTW

Key Points

• Bank Julius Baer opened a new position in Willis Towers Watson Public, buying 11,339 shares worth about $3.78 million in the fourth quarter. Other institutional investors also added to WTW, and hedge funds now own most of the stock.
• Insider activity was positive, with Lucy Clarke purchasing 1,896 shares on May 6 for about $499,350. After the trade, she held 22,717 shares, a 9.11% increase in her ownership.
• WTW reported better-than-expected earnings for the latest quarter, with EPS of $3.72 versus estimates of $3.65, while revenue matched expectations at $2.41 billion. The company also raised its quarterly dividend to $0.96 per share from $0.92.

Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich acquired a new position in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company (NASDAQ:WTW - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 11,339 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,777,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of WTW. Bartlett & CO. Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in Willis Towers Watson Public by 375.0% during the fourth quarter. Bartlett & CO. Wealth Management LLC now owns 76 shares of the company's stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 60 shares during the period. Raiffeisen Bank International AG purchased a new position in Willis Towers Watson Public during the third quarter worth $31,000. Quent Capital LLC purchased a new position in Willis Towers Watson Public during the third quarter worth $34,000. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. purchased a new position in Willis Towers Watson Public during the fourth quarter worth $39,000. Finally, Geneos Wealth Management Inc. boosted its stake in Willis Towers Watson Public by 38.6% during the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 140 shares of the company's stock worth $47,000 after buying an additional 39 shares during the period. 93.09% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Willis Towers Watson Public news, insider Lucy Clarke acquired 1,896 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 6th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $263.37 per share, with a total value of $499,349.52. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider directly owned 22,717 shares in the company, valued at $5,982,976.29. The trade was a 9.11% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.40% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have commented on WTW. Bank of America dropped their price objective on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from $354.00 to $347.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 14th. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from $341.00 to $322.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 8th. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Mizuho lowered their target price on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from $353.00 to $338.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. Finally, Evercore boosted their target price on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from $383.00 to $390.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 4th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $351.73.

Willis Towers Watson Public Stock Up 0.3%

Shares of WTW opened at $248.38 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $23.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.48, a P/E/G ratio of 1.09 and a beta of 0.45. Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company has a 12-month low of $240.61 and a 12-month high of $352.79. The company has a current ratio of 2.92, a quick ratio of 2.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $282.90 and a 200-day moving average price of $306.30.

Willis Towers Watson Public (NASDAQ:WTW - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Friday, May 1st. The company reported $3.72 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.65 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $2.41 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.41 billion. Willis Towers Watson Public had a net margin of 16.84% and a return on equity of 21.52%. The business's revenue was up 8.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $3.13 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company will post 19.5 earnings per share for the current year.

Willis Towers Watson Public Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 31st were paid a $0.96 dividend. This represents a $3.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.5%. This is a boost from Willis Towers Watson Public's previous quarterly dividend of $0.92. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 31st. Willis Towers Watson Public's payout ratio is currently 22.39%.

Willis Towers Watson Public Company Profile

Willis Towers Watson Public NASDAQ: WTW is a global advisory, broking and solutions company that helps organizations manage risk, optimize benefits and cultivate talent. The firm combines insurance brokerage and risk management capabilities with human capital and benefits consulting, actuarial and analytics services, and technology-enabled solutions. Willis Towers Watson serves a broad client base that includes multinational and mid-sized corporations, public sector organizations, insurers and investment managers.

The company's core activities encompass commercial and reinsurance brokerage, risk transfer and risk-financing advice, and claims advocacy, alongside employee benefits and retirement consulting.

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