Ethic Inc. Raises Position in Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company (NASDAQ:WTW)

Key Points

• Ethic Inc. has increased its stake in Willis Towers Watson by 11.8%, owning 15,431 shares valued at approximately $5.2 million as of the latest SEC disclosure.
• Major institutional investors like T. Rowe Price and GAMMA Investing significantly ramped up their investments, with T. Rowe Price increasing its stake by 77.5% and GAMMA Investing increasing by over 40,000% during recent quarters.
• The stock has a current consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" with a price target averaging $364.55, while various analysts have recently adjusted their price targets for the company between $305.00 and $371.00.

Ethic Inc. boosted its stake in Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company (NASDAQ:WTW - Free Report) by 11.8% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 15,431 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 1,633 shares during the period. Ethic Inc.'s holdings in Willis Towers Watson Public were worth $5,200,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 77.5% during the fourth quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,788,542 shares of the company's stock valued at $873,483,000 after purchasing an additional 1,217,714 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 40,489.4% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,007,429 shares of the company's stock valued at $340,461,000 after purchasing an additional 1,004,947 shares in the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC increased its stake in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 6,286.4% during the fourth quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 862,869 shares of the company's stock valued at $270,284,000 after purchasing an additional 849,358 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen LLC bought a new position in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public during the first quarter valued at approximately $195,043,000. Finally, Polen Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 185.1% during the first quarter. Polen Capital Management LLC now owns 366,539 shares of the company's stock valued at $123,872,000 after purchasing an additional 237,953 shares in the last quarter. 93.09% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased 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. Cantor Fitzgerald began 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. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from $316.00 to $305.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, July 7th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from $387.00 to $369.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. Finally, Citigroup began coverage on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public in a research report on Wednesday. They set a "neutral" rating and a $351.00 price target for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $364.55.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other 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 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 legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.32% of the company's stock.

Willis Towers Watson Public Trading Up 0.2%

NASDAQ:WTW 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 company has a market cap of $32.24 billion, a PE ratio of 226.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 0.67. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $309.24 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $316.69.

Willis Towers Watson Public (NASDAQ:WTW - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The company reported $2.86 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.65 by $0.21. Willis Towers Watson Public had a net margin of 1.40% and a return on equity of 21.60%. The business had revenue of $2.26 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.23 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.55 EPS. The firm's revenue was down .2% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast 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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