BNP Paribas Financial Markets Increases Position in Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company $WTW

Key Points

• BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its Willis Towers Watson Public stake by 22.5% in the fourth quarter, adding 42,035 shares and bringing its holdings to 228,502 shares worth about $75.1 million.
• Insider Lucy Clarke bought 1,896 shares on May 6 at an average price of $263.37, a transaction valued at about $499,350.
• Willis Towers Watson reported better-than-expected Q1 earnings of $3.72 per share and revenue of $2.41 billion, and it also announced a quarterly dividend of $0.96 per share, payable July 15.

BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its position in Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company (NASDAQ:WTW - Free Report) by 22.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 228,502 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 42,035 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets owned about 0.24% of Willis Towers Watson Public worth $75,086,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of WTW. Brighton Jones LLC increased its stake in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 4.7% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 1,368 shares of the company's stock worth $429,000 after purchasing an additional 61 shares in the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC grew its stake in Willis Towers Watson Public by 7.6% during the first quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 2,588 shares of the company's stock valued at $875,000 after acquiring an additional 182 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC grew its stake in Willis Towers Watson Public by 16.9% during the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 2,400 shares of the company's stock valued at $811,000 after acquiring an additional 347 shares in the last quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. grew 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 valued at $47,000 after acquiring an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP grew its stake in Willis Towers Watson Public by 12.6% during the second quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 14,806 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,538,000 after acquiring an additional 1,659 shares in the last quarter. 93.09% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Lucy Clarke acquired 1,896 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 6th. The stock was bought at an average price of $263.37 per share, for a total transaction of $499,349.52. Following the acquisition, the insider directly owned 22,717 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,982,976.29. This represents a 9.11% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently weighed in on WTW. BMO Capital Markets raised shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and cut their target price for the company from $347.00 to $300.00 in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Piper Sandler cut their target price on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from $341.00 to $283.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Barclays cut their target price 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. Bank of America cut their target price 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. Finally, UBS Group dropped their price objective on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from $409.00 to $400.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $351.73.

Willis Towers Watson Public Price Performance

Willis Towers Watson Public stock opened at $257.04 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $274.85 and a 200-day moving average price of $301.14. The firm has a market capitalization of $24.28 billion, a PE ratio of 14.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.80 and a beta of 0.43. The company has a current ratio of 2.92, a quick ratio of 2.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78. Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company has a 12-month low of $240.61 and a 12-month high of $352.79.

Willis Towers Watson Public (NASDAQ:WTW - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Friday, May 1st. The company reported $3.72 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 quarter last year, the business earned $3.13 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company will post 19.53 EPS for the current year.

Willis Towers Watson Public Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 30th will be issued a dividend of $0.96 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 30th. This represents a $3.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.5%. Willis Towers Watson Public's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 22.39%.

Willis Towers Watson Public 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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