Polen Capital Management LLC Raises Stock Position in Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company (NASDAQ:WTW)

Key Points

• Polen Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Willis Towers Watson Public by 185.1% during the first quarter, acquiring a total of 366,539 shares valued at approximately $123.8 million.
• Willis Towers Watson reported $2.86 EPS for the last quarter, exceeding expectations and generating a revenue of $2.26 billion, slightly down from the previous year.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.92 per share with a dividend yield of 1.1%, although its dividend payout ratio is notably high at 252.05%.

Polen Capital Management LLC grew its position in Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company (NASDAQ:WTW - Free Report) by 185.1% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 366,539 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 237,953 shares during the quarter. Willis Towers Watson Public comprises approximately 0.4% of Polen Capital Management LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 29th biggest position. Polen Capital Management LLC owned about 0.37% of Willis Towers Watson Public worth $123,872,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Wayfinding Financial LLC bought a new position in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public in the 1st quarter valued at $25,000. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC raised its position in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 750.0% in the 1st quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 85 shares of the company's stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC bought a new stake in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public in the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. Crewe Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public in the 1st quarter valued at about $32,000. Finally, GeoWealth Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 94.9% during the fourth quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC now owns 115 shares of the company's stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.09% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price target on 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. Barclays lowered their target price on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from $316.00 to $305.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, July 7th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from $387.00 to $369.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $367.11.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CFO Andrew Jay Krasner sold 1,600 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $315.75, for a total value of $505,200.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 11,982 shares in the company, valued at $3,783,316.50. The trade was a 11.78% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.32% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Willis Towers Watson Public Trading Up 0.3%

Willis Towers Watson Public stock traded up $0.83 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $330.00. The company's stock had a trading volume of 634,399 shares, compared to its average volume of 764,577. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 1.90 and a quick ratio of 1.90. Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company has a 12 month low of $274.00 and a 12 month high of $344.14. The stock has a market cap of $32.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.80 and a beta of 0.67. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $307.86 and a 200-day moving average price of $316.59.

Willis Towers Watson Public (NASDAQ:WTW - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 31st. The company reported $2.86 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.65 by $0.21. The business had revenue of $2.26 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.23 billion. Willis Towers Watson Public had a net margin of 1.40% and a return on equity of 21.60%. The business's revenue was down .2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.55 earnings per share. As a group, 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 declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 30th were paid a $0.92 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 30th. This represents a $3.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.1%. Willis Towers Watson Public's payout ratio is presently 252.05%.

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.