Regal Partners Ltd Invests $261,000 in Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company (NASDAQ:WTW)

Key Points

• Regal Partners Ltd made a new investment of $261,000 in Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company (NASDAQ: WTW), purchasing 772 shares in the first quarter.
• Institutional ownership of Willis Towers Watson is high, with 93.09% of the stock owned by hedge funds and other investors.
• Willis Towers Watson recently reported its quarterly earnings with an EPS of $2.86, surpassing expectations, and announced a dividend of $0.92 per share.

Regal Partners Ltd bought a new position in Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company (NASDAQ:WTW - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 772 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $261,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 77.5% in the fourth quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,788,542 shares of the company's stock worth $873,483,000 after acquiring an additional 1,217,714 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 40,489.4% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,007,429 shares of the company's stock worth $340,461,000 after acquiring an additional 1,004,947 shares in the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC lifted its stake in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 6,286.4% in the fourth quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 862,869 shares of the company's stock worth $270,284,000 after acquiring an additional 849,358 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen LLC acquired a new position in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public in the first quarter worth about $195,043,000. Finally, Polen Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 185.1% in the first quarter. Polen Capital Management LLC now owns 366,539 shares of the company's stock worth $123,872,000 after acquiring an additional 237,953 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.09% of the company's stock.

Willis Towers Watson Public Stock Up 0.2%

Shares of WTW traded up $0.50 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $330.50. 583,861 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 659,175. The company has a market cap of $32.24 billion, a PE ratio of 226.37, a PEG ratio of 2.67 and a beta of 0.67. The firm's 50 day moving average is $309.24 and its 200-day moving average is $316.75. Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company has a 52 week low of $279.08 and a 52 week high of $344.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a quick ratio of 1.90 and a current ratio of 1.90.

Willis Towers Watson Public (NASDAQ:WTW - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 31st. The company reported $2.86 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.65 by $0.21. Willis Towers Watson Public had a return on equity of 21.60% and a net margin of 1.40%. The business had revenue of $2.26 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.23 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.55 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down .2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company will post 17.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently commented on WTW shares. Cantor Fitzgerald started coverage on Willis Towers Watson Public in a research note on Wednesday. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $355.00 price target on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price objective on Willis Towers Watson Public from $371.00 to $366.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Citigroup started coverage on Willis Towers Watson Public in a research note on Wednesday. They set a "neutral" rating and a $351.00 price objective on the stock. Barclays cut their price objective on Willis Towers Watson Public from $316.00 to $305.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, July 7th. Finally, 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. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $364.55.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO Andrew Jay Krasner sold 1,600 shares of Willis Towers Watson Public stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $315.75, for a total transaction of $505,200.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 11,982 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,783,316.50. This trade represents a 11.78% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.32% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

About Willis Towers Watson Public

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.