Short Interest in Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company (NASDAQ:WTW) Expands By 29.3%

Key Points

• Willis Towers Watson's short interest rose by 29.3% in July, totaling 2,560,000 shares, which represents approximately 2.6% of the company's stock sold short.
• Analysts have varied opinions on the stock, with a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a target price averaging $362.92, reflecting recent changes in price objectives from several major firms.
• In its latest quarterly earnings report, the company posted an EPS of $2.86, exceeding estimates, and total revenue of $2.26 billion, although revenue declined by 0.2% year-over-year.

Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company (NASDAQ:WTW - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest during the month of July. As of July 31st, there was short interest totaling 2,560,000 shares, agrowthof29.3% from the July 15th total of 1,980,000 shares. Approximately2.6% of the shares of the company are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 663,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 3.9 days. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 663,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 3.9 days. Approximately2.6% of the shares of the company are short sold.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Citigroup assumed coverage on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public in a report on Wednesday, August 13th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $351.00 price objective on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from $387.00 to $369.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 10th. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from $316.00 to $305.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, July 7th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from $335.00 to $345.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, August 18th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price objective on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from $371.00 to $366.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 28th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have issued a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Willis Towers Watson Public presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $362.92.

Willis Towers Watson Public Stock Performance

NASDAQ:WTW traded up $2.10 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $339.25. The company's stock had a trading volume of 348,212 shares, compared to its average volume of 684,918. Willis Towers Watson Public has a 1 year low of $280.86 and a 1 year high of $344.14. 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 stock has a market cap of $33.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 232.36, a PEG ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.67. The business's fifty day moving average is $312.96 and its two-hundred day moving average is $317.01.

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Willis Towers Watson Public

In other news, CFO Andrew Jay Krasner sold 1,600 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $315.75, for a total transaction of $505,200.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 11,982 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,783,316.50. The trade was a 11.78% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.32% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Advisory Services Network LLC raised its position in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 37.7% in the second quarter. Advisory Services Network LLC now owns 1,103 shares of the company's stock worth $348,000 after acquiring an additional 302 shares during the period. Nomura Holdings Inc. raised its position in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 6.1% in the second quarter. Nomura Holdings Inc. now owns 3,333 shares of the company's stock worth $1,022,000 after acquiring an additional 191 shares during the period. CYBER HORNET ETFs LLC acquired a new position in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public in the second quarter worth about $81,000. Goodman Advisory Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public during the 2nd quarter worth about $100,000. Finally, Headlands Technologies LLC raised its position in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 10.5% during the 2nd quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC now owns 20,560 shares of the company's stock worth $6,302,000 after purchasing an additional 1,954 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.09% of the company's stock.

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.