Willis Towers Watson Public Limited (NASDAQ:WTW) Stock Holdings Lessened by Sound Shore Management Inc. CT

Sound Shore Management Inc. CT trimmed its position in Willis Towers Watson Public Limited (NASDAQ:WTW) by 12.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 297,120 shares of the company’s stock after selling 42,806 shares during the quarter. Willis Towers Watson Public makes up approximately 3.1% of Sound Shore Management Inc. CT’s portfolio, making the stock its 7th biggest holding. Sound Shore Management Inc. CT owned approximately 0.29% of Willis Towers Watson Public worth $93,070,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Willis Towers Watson Public by 0.8% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,629,439 shares of the company’s stock valued at $772,027,000 after purchasing an additional 19,623 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC raised its stake in Willis Towers Watson Public by 2.0% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 2,416,455 shares of the company’s stock valued at $711,718,000 after purchasing an additional 48,384 shares in the last quarter. Baupost Group LLC MA raised its stake in Willis Towers Watson Public by 7.8% in the third quarter. Baupost Group LLC MA now owns 1,781,206 shares of the company’s stock valued at $524,619,000 after purchasing an additional 128,558 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its stake in Willis Towers Watson Public by 277.8% in the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 844,417 shares of the company’s stock valued at $248,706,000 after purchasing an additional 620,926 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in Willis Towers Watson Public by 2.1% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 604,686 shares of the company’s stock valued at $189,412,000 after purchasing an additional 12,162 shares in the last quarter. 93.09% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Willis Towers Watson Public Stock Performance

Willis Towers Watson Public stock opened at $332.71 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 1.98, a quick ratio of 1.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $326.11 and a 200-day moving average of $312.03. The firm has a market cap of $33.17 billion, a P/E ratio of -332.71, a P/E/G ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 0.71. Willis Towers Watson Public Limited has a 1-year low of $245.04 and a 1-year high of $344.14.

Willis Towers Watson Public (NASDAQ:WTW) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $8.13 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $8.01 by $0.12. The company had revenue of $3.04 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.05 billion. Willis Towers Watson Public had a negative net margin of 0.99% and a positive return on equity of 20.02%. Willis Towers Watson Public’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $7.44 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Willis Towers Watson Public Limited will post 17.32 EPS for the current year.

Willis Towers Watson Public Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be issued a $0.92 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. This is a positive change from Willis Towers Watson Public’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.88. This represents a $3.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.11%. Willis Towers Watson Public’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -368.00%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Willis Towers Watson Public news, insider Julie Jarecke Gebauer sold 3,384 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $335.77, for a total value of $1,136,245.68. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 74,417 shares in the company, valued at $24,986,996.09. This trade represents a 4.35 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.22% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have commented on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from $380.00 to $345.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Truist Financial reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $380.00 target price (up previously from $365.00) on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from $378.00 to $387.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Evercore ISI raised Willis Towers Watson Public from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $357.00 to $373.00 in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, UBS Group raised Willis Towers Watson Public from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $344.00 to $395.00 in a research note on Tuesday, March 18th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Willis Towers Watson Public currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $346.15.

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.