Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company (NASDAQ:WTW) Shares Sold by Heartland Advisors Inc.

Key Points

• Heartland Advisors Inc. has reduced its holdings in Willis Towers Watson by 20%, now owning 33,888 shares valued at approximately $11.45 million.
• Willis Towers Watson reported earnings of $3.13 per share for the most recent quarter, missing analysts' estimates, while its revenue of $2.22 billion was also below expectations.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.92, resulting in an annualized dividend of $3.68 and a yield of 1.19%.

Heartland Advisors Inc. decreased its position in Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company (NASDAQ:WTW - Free Report) by 20.0% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 33,888 shares of the company's stock after selling 8,480 shares during the quarter. Heartland Advisors Inc.'s holdings in Willis Towers Watson Public were worth $11,452,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ boosted its holdings in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 55.5% in the 1st quarter. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ now owns 32,435 shares of the company's stock valued at $10,961,000 after buying an additional 11,582 shares during the period. Drive Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Willis Towers Watson Public during the first quarter worth about $207,000. Assetmark Inc. lifted its holdings in Willis Towers Watson Public by 2.0% in the first quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 6,617 shares of the company's stock worth $2,236,000 after acquiring an additional 129 shares during the last quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. boosted its stake in Willis Towers Watson Public by 9.3% in the first quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 784 shares of the company's stock valued at $265,000 after acquiring an additional 67 shares during the period. Finally, Machina Capital S.A.S. boosted its stake in Willis Towers Watson Public by 34.2% in the first quarter. Machina Capital S.A.S. now owns 3,436 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,161,000 after acquiring an additional 876 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.09% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Willis Towers Watson Public

In other news, CFO Andrew Jay Krasner sold 1,600 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 11,982 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,783,316.50. This represents a 11.78% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 0.32% of the company's stock.

Willis Towers Watson Public Stock Performance

Willis Towers Watson Public stock traded up $4.38 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $313.11. 445,664 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 718,190. The company has a quick ratio of 1.89, a current ratio of 1.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58. Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company has a one year low of $271.01 and a one year high of $344.14. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $306.32 and a 200 day moving average price of $316.49. The company has a market cap of $31.04 billion, a PE ratio of -626.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 0.68.

Willis Towers Watson Public (NASDAQ:WTW - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $3.13 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $3.27 by ($0.14). The business had revenue of $2.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates 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 revenue for the quarter was down 5.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $3.13 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company will post 17.32 EPS for the current year.

Willis Towers Watson Public Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 30th were paid a dividend of $0.92 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 30th. This represents a $3.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.18%. Willis Towers Watson Public's payout ratio is -736.00%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on WTW shares. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on Willis Towers Watson Public from $387.00 to $369.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. Barclays lowered their price objective on Willis Towers Watson Public from $316.00 to $305.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, July 7th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their target price on Willis Towers Watson Public from $371.00 to $366.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 28th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reduced 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 report on Friday, April 11th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Willis Towers Watson Public currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $367.11.

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.