Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company (NASDAQ:WTW) Given Average Rating of "Moderate Buy" by Brokerages

Key Points

• Willis Towers Watson has received a consensus recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from nine research firms, with an average target price of $367.11.
• Insider activity includes CFO Andrew Jay Krasner selling 1,600 shares at an average price of $315.75, reducing his ownership by 11.78%.
• The company recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.92 per share, with a payout ratio of 252.05% and an annualized yield of 1.1%.

Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company (NASDAQ:WTW - Get Free Report) has received a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" from the nine brokerages that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, seven have assigned a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $367.1111.

A number of brokerages have issued reports on WTW. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on Willis Towers Watson Public from $387.00 to $369.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. Barclays reduced their price objective on Willis Towers Watson Public from $316.00 to $305.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, July 7th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price objective on Willis Towers Watson Public from $371.00 to $366.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 28th.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co bought a new position in Willis Towers Watson Public in the 2nd quarter worth about $3,082,000. Quadcap Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in Willis Towers Watson Public by 4.8% in the 2nd quarter. Quadcap Wealth Management LLC now owns 747 shares of the company's stock worth $229,000 after purchasing an additional 34 shares during the period. Global Retirement Partners LLC bought a new position in Willis Towers Watson Public in the 2nd quarter worth about $252,000. Prudential Financial Inc. boosted its position in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 32.4% during the 2nd quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 16,197 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,964,000 after acquiring an additional 3,968 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Coldstream Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 13.3% during the 2nd quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,615 shares of the company's stock valued at $495,000 after acquiring an additional 190 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.09% of the company's stock.

Willis Towers Watson Public Stock Up 0.3%

NASDAQ WTW traded up $0.83 on Friday, reaching $330.00. The company had a trading volume of 634,399 shares, compared to its average volume of 657,480. The stock has a market capitalization of $32.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 226.03, a P/E/G ratio of 2.80 and a beta of 0.67. The company's fifty day moving average is $307.86 and its 200 day moving average is $316.59. Willis Towers Watson Public has a 52-week low of $274.00 and a 52-week high of $344.14. The company has a quick ratio of 1.90, a current ratio of 1.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58.

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

Willis Towers Watson Public Announces Dividend

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

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.