Keefe, Bruyette & Woods Cuts Willis Towers Watson Public (NASDAQ:WTW) Price Target to $380.00

Key Points

• Keefe, Bruyette & Woods trimmed its price target on Willis Towers Watson Public to $380 from $384, while keeping an outperform rating on the stock.
• Other analysts have also been adjusting expectations, and the overall consensus remains Moderate Buy with an average price target of $351.73.
• Willis Towers Watson recently reported better-than-expected earnings of $3.72 per share for the quarter, with revenue up 8.5% year over year; insider Lucy Clarke also bought shares in May.

Willis Towers Watson Public (NASDAQ:WTW - Get Free Report) had its price target dropped by analysts at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods from $384.00 to $380.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an "outperform" rating on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods' target price suggests a potential upside of 52.09% from the stock's current price.

Other analysts have also issued reports about the stock. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from $379.00 to $351.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. Cantor Fitzgerald dropped their target price 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. BMO Capital Markets upgraded shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and reduced their price target for the company from $347.00 to $300.00 in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from $330.00 to $320.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 6th. Finally, Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from $341.00 to $322.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 8th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $351.73.

Willis Towers Watson Public Price Performance

Shares of WTW traded up $0.13 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $249.85. 139,543 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 774,669. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 2.92 and a quick ratio of 2.92. The company has a market capitalization of $23.60 billion, a PE ratio of 14.58, a PEG ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 0.45. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $287.44 and a 200-day simple moving average of $308.49. Willis Towers Watson Public has a one year low of $246.60 and a one 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 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.65 by $0.07. Willis Towers Watson Public had a return on equity of 21.52% and a net margin of 16.84%.The business had revenue of $2.41 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.41 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $3.13 earnings per share. Willis Towers Watson Public's revenue was up 8.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Willis Towers Watson Public will post 19.5 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Willis Towers Watson Public

In related news, insider Lucy Clarke purchased 1,896 shares of Willis Towers Watson Public stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 6th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $263.37 per share, with a total value of $499,349.52. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 22,717 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,982,976.29. This trade represents a 9.11% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.40% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Dodge & Cox boosted its stake in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 90.7% during the 4th 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 period. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public in the fourth quarter worth $511,151,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public during the fourth quarter worth $284,570,000. Bank of Montreal Can raised its holdings in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 657.3% during the fourth quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 941,637 shares of the company's stock worth $309,422,000 after acquiring an additional 817,301 shares in the last quarter. Finally, T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in 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 valued at $1,151,808,000 after purchasing an additional 664,202 shares during the last quarter. 93.09% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Willis Towers Watson Public

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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