Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company $WTW Shares Sold by TD Asset Management Inc

Key Points

• TD Asset Management Inc reduced its stake in Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company by 2.2%, now holding 45,694 shares valued at $14 million.
• The firm reported $2.86 EPS for its last quarterly earnings, surpassing estimates, with a revenue of $2.26 billion, indicating a modest year-over-year decline of 0.2%.
• Willis Towers Watson has initiated a $1.50 billion share repurchase plan, reflecting the board's belief that its shares are undervalued.

TD Asset Management Inc trimmed its stake in Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company (NASDAQ:WTW - Free Report) by 2.2% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 45,694 shares of the company's stock after selling 1,039 shares during the quarter. TD Asset Management Inc's holdings in Willis Towers Watson Public were worth $14,005,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 2.4% in the first quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,856,440 shares of the company's stock worth $965,334,000 after acquiring an additional 67,898 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its stake in Willis Towers Watson Public by 7.0% in the first quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,057,635 shares of the company's stock valued at $357,428,000 after purchasing an additional 69,205 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC lifted its position in Willis Towers Watson Public by 1.8% during the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 953,544 shares of the company's stock worth $322,250,000 after buying an additional 17,154 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in Willis Towers Watson Public by 3.7% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 862,629 shares of the company's stock worth $291,519,000 after buying an additional 30,704 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in Willis Towers Watson Public by 0.5% during the first quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 607,773 shares of the company's stock worth $205,397,000 after buying an additional 3,087 shares during the period. 93.09% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Willis Towers Watson Public Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:WTW opened at $330.15 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $32.21 billion, a PE ratio of 226.13, a P/E/G ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 0.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 1.90 and a quick ratio of 1.90. The business has a 50-day moving average of $335.67 and a two-hundred day moving average of $318.67. Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company has a 12 month low of $287.05 and a 12 month high of $352.79.

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

Willis Towers Watson Public announced that its board has initiated a share repurchase plan on Thursday, September 18th that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to buy up to 4.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

Willis Towers Watson Public Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, October 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 30th were paid a $0.92 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 30th. This represents a $3.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.1%. Willis Towers Watson Public's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 252.05%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on WTW shares. UBS Group increased their target price on Willis Towers Watson Public from $395.00 to $398.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Willis Towers Watson Public from $335.00 to $345.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, August 18th. Piper Sandler increased their target price on Willis Towers Watson Public from $369.00 to $387.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, October 6th. Barclays reduced their target price on Willis Towers Watson Public from $316.00 to $305.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, July 7th. Finally, Evercore ISI increased their target price on Willis Towers Watson Public from $373.00 to $387.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 1st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have issued a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $369.42.

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.

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