Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank Purchases 52,341 Shares of Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company (NASDAQ:WTW)

Key Points

• Zurcher Kantonalbank increased its stake in Willis Towers Watson by 137.4%, acquiring an additional 52,341 shares for a total of 90,427 shares, now valued at approximately $30.56 million.
• Several hedge funds are active in Willis Towers Watson, with notable increases in holdings, including Cornerstone Planning Group's 750.0% boost in shares during the same quarter.
• Recent analyst reports have adjusted the target price for Willis Towers Watson, with Barclays lowering theirs to $305.00, while the consensus rating remains a "Moderate Buy" with a target price of $367.11.

Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank increased its position in Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company (NASDAQ:WTW - Free Report) by 137.4% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 90,427 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 52,341 shares during the quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank owned 0.09% of Willis Towers Watson Public worth $30,560,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in WTW. FMR LLC grew its position in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 52.4% during the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,682,939 shares of the company's stock worth $1,153,644,000 after buying an additional 1,266,484 shares during the period. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 77.5% in the 4th quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,788,542 shares of the company's stock worth $873,483,000 after purchasing an additional 1,217,714 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. lifted its stake in Willis Towers Watson Public by 14.7% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 2,228,497 shares of the company's stock valued at $698,055,000 after acquiring an additional 285,497 shares in the last quarter. Baupost Group LLC MA lifted its stake in Willis Towers Watson Public by 3.1% during the 4th quarter. Baupost Group LLC MA now owns 1,836,748 shares of the company's stock valued at $575,343,000 after acquiring an additional 55,542 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp lifted its stake in Willis Towers Watson Public by 14.3% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,216,487 shares of the company's stock valued at $381,052,000 after acquiring an additional 152,128 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.09% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on WTW shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their target price 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. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on Willis Towers Watson Public from $387.00 to $369.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. Barclays lowered 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, Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price objective on Willis Towers Watson Public from $373.00 to $371.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $367.11.

Insider Activity at Willis Towers Watson Public

In other news, CFO Andrew Jay Krasner sold 1,600 shares of the business's 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 completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 11,982 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,783,316.50. The trade was a 11.78% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.32% of the company's stock.

Willis Towers Watson Public Price Performance

WTW stock traded up $14.94 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $316.77. 371,632 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 646,794. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 1.89 and a quick ratio of 1.89. The company has a market capitalization of $31.41 billion, a P/E ratio of -633.53, a P/E/G ratio of 2.55 and a beta of 0.68. Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company has a 52-week low of $271.01 and a 52-week high of $344.14. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $305.84 and a 200-day moving average price of $316.28.

Willis Towers Watson Public (NASDAQ:WTW - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 31st. The company reported $2.86 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.66 by $0.20. Willis Towers Watson Public had a positive return on equity of 20.53% and a negative net margin of 0.54%. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.55 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was down .2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts anticipate that Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company will post 17.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Willis Towers Watson Public Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 30th were issued a dividend of $0.92 per share. This represents a $3.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.16%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 30th. Willis Towers Watson Public's payout ratio is -736.00%.

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.