PBU The Pension Fund of Early Childhood & Youth Educators Invests $8.05 Million in Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company $WTW

Key Points

• PBU The Pension Fund of Early Childhood & Youth Educators bought a new stake in Willis Towers Watson Public, acquiring 24,504 shares valued at about $8.05 million in the fourth quarter.
• Willis Towers Watson also saw insider buying, with director Lucy Clarke purchasing 1,896 shares for roughly $499,350, increasing her position by 9.11%.
• The company reported better-than-expected earnings for the quarter, and it announced a quarterly dividend of $0.96 per share payable on July 15.

PBU The Pension Fund of Early Childhood & Youth Educators acquired a new stake in Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company (NASDAQ:WTW - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 24,504 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,052,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WTW. 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 valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 60 shares during the period. Fideuram Asset Management Ireland dac purchased a new stake in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public during the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,000. Larson Financial Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 72.5% during the fourth quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 88 shares of the company's stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares during the last quarter. Raiffeisen Bank International AG purchased a new stake in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public during the third quarter worth approximately $31,000. Finally, Elyxium Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public during the fourth quarter worth approximately $36,000. 93.09% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Willis Towers Watson Public

In other news, insider Lucy Clarke acquired 1,896 shares of Willis Towers Watson Public stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 6th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $263.37 per share, for a total transaction of $499,349.52. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider directly owned 22,717 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,982,976.29. This trade represents a 9.11% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.40% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have issued reports on WTW. Bank of America cut their price objective on Willis Towers Watson Public from $354.00 to $347.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 14th. UBS Group decreased their target price on Willis Towers Watson Public from $409.00 to $400.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Cantor Fitzgerald cut their price target on Willis Towers Watson Public from $363.00 to $354.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from $379.00 to $351.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price objective on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from $384.00 to $380.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, May 12th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $351.73.

Willis Towers Watson Public Price Performance

WTW stock opened at $263.54 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $24.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.85 and a beta of 0.43. Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company has a 1 year low of $240.61 and a 1 year high of $352.79. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $272.09 and a 200-day simple moving average of $299.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78, a quick ratio of 2.92 and a current ratio of 2.92.

Willis Towers Watson Public (NASDAQ:WTW - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, May 1st. The company reported $3.72 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.65 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $2.41 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.41 billion. Willis Towers Watson Public had a return on equity of 21.52% and a net margin of 16.84%.Willis Towers Watson Public's quarterly revenue was up 8.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $3.13 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company will post 19.53 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Willis Towers Watson Public Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 30th will be paid a dividend of $0.96 per share. This represents a $3.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.5%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 30th. Willis Towers Watson Public's dividend payout ratio is 22.39%.

Willis Towers Watson Public Company Profile

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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