First Eagle Investment Management LLC Reduces Stock Position in Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company $WTW

Key Points

• First Eagle Investment Management trimmed its Willis Towers Watson Public stake by 0.3% in the fourth quarter, but still held 4.25 million shares valued at about $1.40 billion, making WTW its 12th-largest holding.
• Insider Lucy Clarke bought 1,896 shares at $263.37 each, a purchase worth roughly $499,350, signaling insider confidence even as the stock has fallen.
• WTW shares were down 2.6% and recently traded near $249.72, while the company beat quarterly EPS estimates and raised its dividend to $0.96 per share; analysts currently rate the stock a Moderate Buy with a $352 average price target.

First Eagle Investment Management LLC lessened its stake in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company (NASDAQ:WTW - Free Report) by 0.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 4,250,802 shares of the company's stock after selling 14,312 shares during the quarter. Willis Towers Watson Public comprises about 2.5% of First Eagle Investment Management LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 12th biggest holding. First Eagle Investment Management LLC owned 4.44% of Willis Towers Watson Public worth $1,396,814,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Bartlett & CO. Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 375.0% in the fourth quarter. Bartlett & CO. Wealth Management LLC now owns 76 shares of the company's stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 60 shares during the last quarter. Raiffeisen Bank International AG purchased a new position in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public in the third quarter worth approximately $31,000. Quent Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public in the third quarter worth approximately $34,000. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public in the fourth quarter worth approximately $39,000. Finally, Geneos Wealth Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 38.6% in the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 140 shares of the company's stock worth $47,000 after buying an additional 39 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.09% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Willis Towers Watson Public

In related news, insider Lucy Clarke bought 1,896 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 6th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $263.37 per share, with a total value of $499,349.52. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider owned 22,717 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,982,976.29. This represents a 9.11% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.40% of the company's stock.

Willis Towers Watson Public Stock Down 2.6%

Shares of WTW stock opened at $249.72 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $23.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.56, a PEG ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 0.45. Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company has a one year low of $246.60 and a one year high of $352.79. The company's fifty day moving average price is $287.44 and its 200-day moving average price is $308.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 2.92 and a quick ratio of 2.92.

Willis Towers Watson Public (NASDAQ:WTW - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, May 1st. The company reported $3.72 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.65 by $0.07. Willis Towers Watson Public had a net margin of 16.84% and a return on equity of 21.52%. The firm had revenue of $2.41 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.41 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $3.13 EPS. The company's revenue was up 8.5% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company will post 19.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Willis Towers Watson Public Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st were issued a $0.96 dividend. This represents a $3.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.5%. This is a boost from Willis Towers Watson Public's previous quarterly dividend of $0.92. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 31st. Willis Towers Watson Public's payout ratio is presently 22.39%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on WTW shares. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. Citigroup raised shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $300.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Evercore raised their price objective on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from $383.00 to $390.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from $379.00 to $351.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 9th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price objective on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from $388.00 to $384.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 7th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Willis Towers Watson Public currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $352.00.

About Willis Towers Watson Public

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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