First Trust Advisors LP Has $43.52 Million Position in Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company $WTW

Key Points

• First Trust Advisors LP boosted its stake in Willis Towers Watson by 750.9% in Q3, buying 111,173 shares to hold 125,979 shares worth $43.52 million (about 0.13% of the company).
• Willis Towers Watson beat quarterly estimates with EPS of $8.12 and revenue of $2.94 billion (revenue was down 3.3% YoY), and the company raised its quarterly dividend to $0.96 (annualized $3.84), with an ex-dividend date of March 31.
• Analyst sentiment is broadly positive with a MarketBeat consensus of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $373.14, alongside several recent upgrades and target adjustments.

First Trust Advisors LP increased its stake in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company (NASDAQ:WTW - Free Report) by 750.9% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 125,979 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 111,173 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP owned 0.13% of Willis Towers Watson Public worth $43,520,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Cambria Investment Management L.P. acquired a new position in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public during the third quarter worth approximately $243,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its holdings in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 3.2% in the third quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 984,832 shares of the company's stock valued at $340,180,000 after purchasing an additional 30,387 shares in the last quarter. Montag A & Associates Inc. raised its position in Willis Towers Watson Public by 3.2% in the 3rd quarter. Montag A & Associates Inc. now owns 8,812 shares of the company's stock worth $3,050,000 after purchasing an additional 276 shares during the last quarter. Cresset Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in Willis Towers Watson Public by 4.9% during the 3rd quarter. Cresset Asset Management LLC now owns 1,484 shares of the company's stock worth $514,000 after buying an additional 69 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Kingsview Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in Willis Towers Watson Public by 1.6% during the 3rd quarter. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC now owns 29,997 shares of the company's stock worth $10,363,000 after buying an additional 474 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.09% of the company's stock.

Willis Towers Watson Public Trading Up 0.2%

Shares of NASDAQ WTW opened at $289.90 on Thursday. Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company has a twelve month low of $275.60 and a twelve month high of $352.79. The stock has a market cap of $27.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.70, a P/E/G ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 0.62. The company has a quick ratio of 2.21, a current ratio of 2.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71. The company's fifty day moving average is $312.25 and its 200-day moving average is $323.35.

Willis Towers Watson Public (NASDAQ:WTW - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 3rd. The company reported $8.12 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $7.93 by $0.19. The business had revenue of $2.94 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.87 billion. Willis Towers Watson Public had a net margin of 16.53% and a return on equity of 20.91%. The firm's quarterly revenue was down 3.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $8.13 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company will post 17.32 EPS for the current year.

Willis Towers Watson Public Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st will be issued a $0.96 dividend. This represents a $3.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.3%. This is an increase from Willis Towers Watson Public's previous quarterly dividend of $0.92. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 31st. Willis Towers Watson Public's dividend payout ratio is currently 22.47%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WTW has been the subject of several research reports. Barclays raised Willis Towers Watson Public from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and lifted their target price for the company from $318.00 to $341.00 in a research note on Wednesday. Wall Street Zen upgraded Willis Towers Watson Public from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, February 7th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on Willis Towers Watson Public from $375.00 to $388.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 6th. Truist Financial boosted their price objective on Willis Towers Watson Public from $380.00 to $400.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. Finally, Piper Sandler cut their target price on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from $365.00 to $341.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 23rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $373.14.

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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