Willis Towers Watson Public Limited (NASDAQ:WTW) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Willis Towers Watson Public Limited (NASDAQ:WTW) has been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the thirteen ratings firms that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price target among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $342.08.

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Truist Financial reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $380.00 price target (up from $365.00) on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $352.00 to $382.00 in a research note on Friday, December 20th. Evercore ISI raised shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $357.00 to $373.00 in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from $278.00 to $302.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price 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.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Julie Jarecke Gebauer sold 3,384 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $335.77, for a total transaction of $1,136,245.68. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 74,417 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $24,986,996.09. The trade was a 4.35 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Willis Towers Watson Public

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its position in Willis Towers Watson Public by 5.6% during the 4th quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 5,196 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,628,000 after acquiring an additional 276 shares in the last quarter. Lansforsakringar Fondforvaltning AB publ acquired a new position in Willis Towers Watson Public during the 4th quarter worth approximately $10,566,000. Siemens Fonds Invest GmbH increased its holdings in Willis Towers Watson Public by 380.9% during the 4th quarter. Siemens Fonds Invest GmbH now owns 5,280 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,750,000 after purchasing an additional 4,182 shares during the last quarter. Park Square Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in Willis Towers Watson Public during the 4th quarter worth approximately $62,000. Finally, Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH purchased a new stake in Willis Towers Watson Public during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,485,000. 93.09% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Willis Towers Watson Public Stock Performance

NASDAQ:WTW opened at $328.33 on Thursday. 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 price of $324.38 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $310.86. Willis Towers Watson Public has a twelve month low of $245.04 and a twelve month high of $344.14. The company has a market capitalization of $32.73 billion, a P/E ratio of -328.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 0.71.

Willis Towers Watson Public (NASDAQ:WTW) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $8.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $8.01 by $0.12. Willis Towers Watson Public had a negative net margin of 0.99% and a positive return on equity of 20.02%. The company had revenue of $3.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.05 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $7.44 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts expect that Willis Towers Watson Public will post 17.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Willis Towers Watson Public Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be paid a $0.92 dividend. 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 dividend yield of 1.12%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. Willis Towers Watson Public’s payout ratio is currently -368.00%.

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.