Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company (NASDAQ:WTW) Receives Consensus Rating of "Moderate Buy" from Brokerages

Key Points

• Willis Towers Watson Public has a consensus analyst rating of “Moderate Buy” from 17 brokerages, with an average 12-month price target of $350.
• The company’s latest quarterly results beat earnings expectations, reporting $3.72 EPS versus the $3.65 estimate, while revenue came in at $2.41 billion, up 8.5% year over year.
• Willis Towers Watson also announced a quarterly dividend of $0.96 per share, payable July 15, reflecting an annualized yield of about 1.5%.

Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company (NASDAQ:WTW - Get Free Report) has been assigned a consensus recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the seventeen brokerages that are covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, nine have issued a buy recommendation and two have assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month price target among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $350.00.

Several equities research analysts have commented on the company. Cantor Fitzgerald dropped their target price on Willis Towers Watson Public from $363.00 to $354.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 9th. Truist Financial raised Willis Towers Watson Public to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Citigroup upgraded shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $300.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Piper Sandler cut their price objective on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from $341.00 to $283.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upgraded shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $347.00 to $300.00 in a research note on Friday, May 1st.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Lucy Clarke acquired 1,896 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 6th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $263.37 per share, for a total transaction of $499,349.52. Following the acquisition, the insider directly owned 22,717 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,982,976.29. The trade was a 9.11% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.40% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its position in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 4.7% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 1,368 shares of the company's stock valued at $429,000 after buying an additional 61 shares during the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Willis Towers Watson Public by 7.6% during the 1st quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 2,588 shares of the company's stock valued at $875,000 after acquiring an additional 182 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its stake in Willis Towers Watson Public by 16.9% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 2,400 shares of the company's stock valued at $811,000 after acquiring an additional 347 shares during the period. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 38.6% during the 1st quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 140 shares of the company's stock valued at $47,000 after acquiring an additional 39 shares during the last quarter. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP grew its stake in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 12.6% in the second quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 14,806 shares of the company's stock worth $4,538,000 after acquiring an additional 1,659 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.09% of the company's stock.

Willis Towers Watson Public Price Performance

Shares of WTW opened at $261.37 on Wednesday. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $262.18 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $292.27. Willis Towers Watson Public has a fifty-two week low of $240.61 and a fifty-two week high of $352.79. The stock has a market cap of $24.69 billion, a PE ratio of 15.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.85 and a beta of 0.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78, a quick ratio of 2.92 and a current ratio of 2.92.

Willis Towers Watson Public (NASDAQ:WTW - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, May 1st. The company reported $3.72 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates 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 firm had revenue of $2.41 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.41 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $3.13 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 8.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that Willis Towers Watson Public will post 19.53 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Willis Towers Watson Public Dividend Announcement

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

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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