Ethic Inc. Has $4.27 Million Position in Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company $WTW

Key Points

• Ethic Inc. has reduced its holdings in Willis Towers Watson Public by 9.2%, now owning approximately $4.27 million worth of shares.
• Willis Towers Watson recently announced a $1.50 billion stock buyback program, indicating management believes the stock is undervalued.
• The company's latest earnings report showed a net margin of 1.40%, with an EPS of $2.86, exceeding analysts' expectations.

Ethic Inc. lowered its position in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company (NASDAQ:WTW - Free Report) by 9.2% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 14,014 shares of the company's stock after selling 1,417 shares during the quarter. Ethic Inc.'s holdings in Willis Towers Watson Public were worth $4,267,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. D.A. Davidson & CO. grew its holdings in Willis Towers Watson Public by 76.4% during the second quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 2,392 shares of the company's stock valued at $733,000 after purchasing an additional 1,036 shares during the period. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale grew its holdings in Willis Towers Watson Public by 0.7% during the second quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale now owns 30,437 shares of the company's stock valued at $9,218,000 after purchasing an additional 207 shares during the period. Accretive Wealth Partners LLC grew its holdings in Willis Towers Watson Public by 1.2% during the second quarter. Accretive Wealth Partners LLC now owns 6,581 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,017,000 after purchasing an additional 79 shares during the period. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC grew its holdings in Willis Towers Watson Public by 59.3% during the second quarter. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC now owns 2,007 shares of the company's stock valued at $623,000 after purchasing an additional 747 shares during the period. Finally, Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. grew its holdings in Willis Towers Watson Public by 11.9% during the second quarter. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. now owns 7,778 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,384,000 after purchasing an additional 827 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.09% of the company's stock.

Willis Towers Watson Public Stock Performance

Shares of WTW stock opened at $331.38 on Friday. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $335.70 and its 200-day simple moving average is $319.12. The company has a quick ratio of 1.90, a current ratio of 1.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58. The firm has a market cap of $32.33 billion, a PE ratio of 226.97, a P/E/G ratio of 2.67 and a beta of 0.73. Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company has a 12 month low of $287.58 and a 12 month high of $352.79.

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

Willis Towers Watson Public announced that its board has initiated a stock buyback program on Thursday, September 18th that permits the company to buyback $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to repurchase up to 4.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually a sign that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Willis Towers Watson Public Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, October 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 30th were given a $0.92 dividend. This represents a $3.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, September 30th. Willis Towers Watson Public's payout ratio is currently 252.05%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Cantor Fitzgerald assumed coverage on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public in a research note on Wednesday, August 13th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $355.00 price target on the stock. Barclays cut 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 note on Monday, July 7th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from $366.00 to $372.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, September 29th. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed a "strong-buy" rating and issued a $400.00 price target (up previously from $380.00) on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public in a research note on Monday, September 22nd. Finally, Piper Sandler lifted their price target on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from $369.00 to $387.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, October 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $369.42.

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.

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