SG Americas Securities LLC Sells 5,656 Shares of Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company $WTW

Key Points

• SG Americas Securities LLC reduced its WTW stake by 9.3% in the first quarter, selling 5,656 shares and leaving it with 55,479 shares valued at about $16.1 million.
• Willis Towers Watson posted solid first-quarter results, with EPS of $3.72 beating estimates and revenue of $2.41 billion matching forecasts; revenue rose 8.5% year over year.
• The company also announced a quarterly dividend of $0.96 per share, payable July 15, which annualizes to $3.84 per share for a 1.5% yield.

SG Americas Securities LLC lowered its stake in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company (NASDAQ:WTW - Free Report) by 9.3% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 55,479 shares of the company's stock after selling 5,656 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC owned approximately 0.06% of Willis Towers Watson Public worth $16,128,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Bartlett & CO. Wealth Management LLC lifted 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 purchasing an additional 60 shares in the last quarter. Fideuram Asset Management Ireland dac bought a new stake in Willis Towers Watson Public during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Larson Financial Group LLC grew its holdings in 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 buying an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. MV Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Willis Towers Watson Public in the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, Reflection Asset Management purchased a new stake in Willis Towers Watson Public in the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. 93.09% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Lucy Clarke bought 1,896 shares of the company's stock in a transaction 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 in the company, valued at $5,982,976.29. The trade was a 9.11% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.40% of the company's stock.

Willis Towers Watson Public Stock Down 1.5%

WTW stock opened at $257.69 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $24.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.03, a P/E/G ratio of 0.84 and a beta of 0.43. The company has a current ratio of 2.92, a quick ratio of 2.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $264.06 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $293.44. Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company has a 1-year low of $240.61 and a 1-year high of $352.79.

Willis Towers Watson Public (NASDAQ:WTW - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Friday, May 1st. The company reported $3.72 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.65 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $2.41 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.41 billion. Willis Towers Watson Public had a return on equity of 21.52% and a net margin of 16.84%.The business's revenue was up 8.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $3.13 EPS. Analysts expect that Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company will post 19.52 EPS for the current year.

Willis Towers Watson Public Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 30th will be issued a dividend of $0.96 per share. This represents a $3.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.5%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 30th. Willis Towers Watson Public's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 22.39%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on WTW shares. UBS Group cut their price objective on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from $400.00 to $374.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, June 9th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a report on Friday, May 15th. Cantor Fitzgerald dropped their price target on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from $363.00 to $354.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, April 25th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $347.00 to $300.00 in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Two 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 company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $350.00.

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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