Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio Invests $7.03 Million in Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company $WTW

Key Points

• Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio acquired 26,897 WTW shares worth approximately $7.03 million, while institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 93.09% of the company.
• Analysts remain broadly positive, with a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $369.38; several firms recently raised their targets to between $378 and $405.
• WTW exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $3.35 EPS and $2.47 billion in revenue, up 9.1% year over year. The company also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.96 per share, implying a 1.1% annualized yield.

Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio acquired a new stake in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company (NASDAQ:WTW - Free Report) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 26,897 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,030,000.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Dodge & Cox raised its stake in Willis Towers Watson Public by 90.7% in the fourth quarter. Dodge & Cox now owns 6,925,525 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,275,728,000 after buying an additional 3,293,334 shares during the last quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 23.4% during the fourth quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,505,195 shares of the company's stock worth $1,151,808,000 after acquiring an additional 664,202 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 2.7% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 2,212,870 shares of the company's stock worth $727,149,000 after acquiring an additional 57,162 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public during the fourth quarter valued at about $511,151,000. Finally, Baupost Group LLC MA increased its holdings in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 24.7% during the fourth quarter. Baupost Group LLC MA now owns 1,357,601 shares of the company's stock valued at $446,108,000 after acquiring an additional 268,536 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.09% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have weighed in on WTW shares. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on Willis Towers Watson Public from $316.00 to $385.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. Truist Financial raised their price objective on Willis Towers Watson Public from $320.00 to $400.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, July 31st. UBS Group lifted their target price on Willis Towers Watson Public from $382.00 to $405.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, August 3rd. Weiss Ratings upgraded Willis Towers Watson Public from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 26th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from $341.00 to $378.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, July 31st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $369.38.

Willis Towers Watson Public Trading Down 1.2%

WTW stock opened at $334.47 on Wednesday. Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company has a 52-week low of $240.61 and a 52-week high of $352.79. The company has a quick ratio of 1.68, a current ratio of 1.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74. The firm has a market cap of $31.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.57, a PEG ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 0.41. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $311.84 and its 200-day simple moving average is $289.73.

Willis Towers Watson Public (NASDAQ:WTW - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The company reported $3.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.12 by $0.23. Willis Towers Watson Public had a return on equity of 22.19% and a net margin of 15.49%.The company had revenue of $2.47 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.42 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.86 earnings per share. Willis Towers Watson Public's revenue for the quarter was up 9.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company will post 19.82 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Willis Towers Watson Public Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 15th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 30th will be given a dividend of $0.96 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, September 30th. This represents a $3.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.1%. Willis Towers Watson Public's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 23.62%.

Willis Towers Watson Public 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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