Burgundy Asset Management Ltd. Lowers Stake in Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company (NASDAQ:WTW)

Key Points

• Burgundy Asset Management Ltd. reduced its holdings in Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company by 3.3%, owning approximately 901,337 shares worth around $304.6 million at the end of the 1st quarter.
• Several institutional investors have also increased their stakes in Willis Towers Watson, with Mather Group LLC leading with a 6.2% increase in the first quarter.
• Wall Street analysts have mixed opinions on the stock, with an average target price of $364.55 and ratings ranging from "sell" to "strong buy".

Burgundy Asset Management Ltd. lessened its holdings in Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company (NASDAQ:WTW - Free Report) by 3.3% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 901,337 shares of the company's stock after selling 31,158 shares during the period. Willis Towers Watson Public comprises approximately 3.2% of Burgundy Asset Management Ltd.'s holdings, making the stock its 3rd biggest position. Burgundy Asset Management Ltd. owned approximately 0.91% of Willis Towers Watson Public worth $304,607,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC grew its holdings in Willis Towers Watson Public by 1.8% during the 1st quarter. Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC now owns 2,018 shares of the company's stock valued at $682,000 after buying an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Vident Advisory LLC increased its position in Willis Towers Watson Public by 2.8% in the fourth quarter. Vident Advisory LLC now owns 1,405 shares of the company's stock worth $440,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. Brighton Jones LLC increased its position in Willis Towers Watson Public by 2.9% in the first quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 1,408 shares of the company's stock worth $476,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. Mather Group LLC. increased its position in Willis Towers Watson Public by 6.2% in the first quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 718 shares of the company's stock worth $243,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Forum Financial Management LP increased its position in Willis Towers Watson Public by 3.8% in the fourth quarter. Forum Financial Management LP now owns 1,197 shares of the company's stock worth $375,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.09% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Andrew Jay Krasner sold 1,600 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $315.75, for a total transaction of $505,200.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 11,982 shares in the company, valued at $3,783,316.50. This trade represents a 11.78% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.32% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently weighed in on WTW. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from $316.00 to $305.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, July 7th. Citigroup assumed coverage on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public in a research note on Wednesday. They set a "neutral" rating and a $351.00 price objective for the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their target price on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from $371.00 to $366.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from $387.00 to $369.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald assumed coverage on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public in a research note on Wednesday. They set a "neutral" rating and a $355.00 target price for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Willis Towers Watson Public has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $364.55.

Willis Towers Watson Public Trading Up 0.2%

Willis Towers Watson Public stock opened at $330.50 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.90, a quick ratio of 1.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58. Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company has a 12 month low of $279.08 and a 12 month high of $344.14. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $309.24 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $316.69. The firm has a market cap of $32.24 billion, a PE ratio of 226.37, a P/E/G ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 0.67.

Willis Towers Watson Public (NASDAQ:WTW - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 31st. The company reported $2.86 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.65 by $0.21. Willis Towers Watson Public had a return on equity of 21.60% and a net margin of 1.40%. The business had revenue of $2.26 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.23 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.55 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was down .2% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company will post 17.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Willis Towers Watson Public Company Profile

Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company operates as an advisory, broking, and solutions company worldwide. It operates through two segments: Health, Wealth & Career and Risk & Broking. The company offers strategy and design consulting, plan management service and support, broking and administration services for health, wellbeing, and other group benefit program, including medical, dental, disability, life, voluntary benefits and other coverages; actuarial support, plan design, and administrative services for pension and retirement savings plans; retirement consulting services and solutions; and integrated solutions that consists of investment discretionary management, pension administration, core actuarial, and communication and change management assistance services.

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