Willis Towers Watson Public (NASDAQ:WTW) Releases Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $0.21 EPS

Key Points

• Willis Towers Watson Public reported quarterly earnings of $2.86 per share, exceeding analysts' expectations by $0.21 and posting a slight year-over-year revenue decline of 0.2% to $2.26 billion.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.92 per share, which represents an annualized dividend yield of 1.2%.
• Brokerages have recently adjusted their price targets for the stock, with Barclays setting a target of $305, indicating a cautious outlook with an "underweight" rating.

Willis Towers Watson Public (NASDAQ:WTW - Get Free Report) issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday. The company reported $2.86 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.65 by $0.21, Zacks reports. Willis Towers Watson Public had a return on equity of 21.60% and a net margin of 1.40%. The firm had revenue of $2.26 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.23 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.55 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was down .2% on a year-over-year basis.

Willis Towers Watson Public Trading Down 0.3%

Shares of WTW stock traded down $1.04 on Friday, reaching $314.77. 928,150 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 665,068. The stock has a market cap of $31.21 billion, a PE ratio of 215.60, a P/E/G ratio of 2.66 and a beta of 0.67. Willis Towers Watson Public has a one year low of $271.01 and a one 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 1.89. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $305.99 and a 200 day moving average price of $316.31.

Willis Towers Watson Public Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 30th were given a dividend of $0.92 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 30th. This represents a $3.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.2%. Willis Towers Watson Public's payout ratio is presently -736.00%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently commented on WTW. Barclays lowered their price target on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from $316.00 to $305.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, July 7th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on Willis Towers Watson Public from $387.00 to $369.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 10th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut 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 report on Monday, April 28th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price target on Willis Towers Watson Public from $373.00 to $371.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 11th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $367.11.

Insider Activity at Willis Towers Watson Public

In other Willis Towers Watson Public 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 value of $505,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly 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 transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.32% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Willis Towers Watson Public

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 4.7% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 1,368 shares of the company's stock valued at $429,000 after purchasing an additional 61 shares in the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC raised its position 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 worth $875,000 after purchasing an additional 182 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC grew its stake in Willis Towers Watson Public by 16.9% during the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 2,400 shares of the company's stock worth $811,000 after purchasing an additional 347 shares during the period. Finally, Geneos Wealth Management Inc. grew its stake in Willis Towers Watson Public by 38.6% during the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 140 shares of the company's stock worth $47,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 93.09% of the company's stock.

Willis Towers Watson Public Company Profile

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.