Canoe Financial LP Grows Position in Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company (NASDAQ:WTW)

Canoe Financial LP increased its holdings in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company (NASDAQ:WTW - Free Report) by 48.9% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 227,621 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 74,758 shares during the quarter. Canoe Financial LP owned 0.23% of Willis Towers Watson Public worth $76,925,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC boosted its position in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 1.8% during the first quarter. Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC now owns 2,018 shares of the company's stock worth $682,000 after buying an additional 35 shares during the period. Ritholtz Wealth Management purchased a new position in Willis Towers Watson Public during the 1st quarter valued at about $406,000. Sanctuary Advisors LLC grew its position in Willis Towers Watson Public by 2.7% in the 4th quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 4,135 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,364,000 after acquiring an additional 109 shares in the last quarter. Sunriver Management LLC increased its stake in Willis Towers Watson Public by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Sunriver Management LLC now owns 175,627 shares of the company's stock worth $55,013,000 after purchasing an additional 1,223 shares during the period. Finally, Atria Wealth Solutions Inc. purchased a new stake in Willis Towers Watson Public during the fourth quarter worth about $263,000. 93.09% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Willis Towers Watson Public

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from $302.00 to $316.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a report on Friday, April 11th. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price target on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from $373.00 to $371.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 11th. UBS Group upgraded Willis Towers Watson Public from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their target price for the company from $344.00 to $395.00 in a report on Tuesday, March 18th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their target price on 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. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $356.30.

Willis Towers Watson Public Stock Down 0.4%

Shares of WTW traded down $1.31 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $302.38. The company's stock had a trading volume of 820,023 shares, compared to its average volume of 594,137. The company's 50 day moving average is $308.81 and its 200 day moving average is $317.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 1.89 and a quick ratio of 1.89. Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company has a 12-month low of $255.19 and a 12-month high of $344.14. The stock has a market cap of $29.98 billion, a PE ratio of -604.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.55 and a beta of 0.70.

Willis Towers Watson Public (NASDAQ:WTW - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $3.13 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $3.27 by ($0.14). The firm had revenue of $2.22 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.29 billion. Willis Towers Watson Public had a negative net margin of 0.54% and a positive return on equity of 20.53%. Willis Towers Watson Public's quarterly revenue was down 5.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $3.13 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company will post 17.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Willis Towers Watson Public Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 30th will be paid a $0.92 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 30th. This represents a $3.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.22%. Willis Towers Watson Public's dividend payout ratio is presently -736.00%.

Willis Towers Watson Public 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.