Willis Towers Watson Public (NASDAQ:WTW) Given “Outperform” Rating at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods

Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reaffirmed their outperform rating on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public (NASDAQ:WTW) in a research report sent to investors on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods currently has a $387.00 price target on the stock.

A number of other research firms have also weighed in on WTW. UBS Group upgraded shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $344.00 to $395.00 in a report on Tuesday, March 18th. Evercore ISI raised 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. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective 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. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $352.00 to $382.00 in a research note on Friday, December 20th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Willis Towers Watson Public presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $346.15.

Willis Towers Watson Public Trading Down 0.8 %

Shares of NASDAQ:WTW traded down $2.45 on Wednesday, reaching $312.36. 157,658 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 557,099. Willis Towers Watson Public has a 52 week low of $245.04 and a 52 week high of $344.14. 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 business’s 50-day simple moving average is $327.21 and its 200 day simple moving average is $315.29. The stock has a market capitalization of $31.14 billion, a P/E ratio of -310.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 0.68.

Willis Towers Watson Public (NASDAQ:WTW) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $8.13 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $8.01 by $0.12. Willis Towers Watson Public had a positive return on equity of 20.02% and a negative net margin of 0.99%. The firm had revenue of $3.04 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.05 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $7.44 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Willis Towers Watson Public will post 17.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Willis Towers Watson Public Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be issued a dividend of $0.92 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. This is an increase from Willis Towers Watson Public’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.88. This represents a $3.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.18%. Willis Towers Watson Public’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -368.00%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Willis Towers Watson Public news, insider Julie Jarecke Gebauer sold 3,384 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $335.77, for a total transaction of $1,136,245.68. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 74,417 shares in the company, valued at approximately $24,986,996.09. The trade was a 4.35 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.22% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Willis Towers Watson Public

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in WTW. McIlrath & Eck LLC purchased a new stake in Willis Towers Watson Public in the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. GeoWealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 94.9% during the 4th quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC now owns 115 shares of the company’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 56 shares during the period. Y.D. More Investments Ltd raised its position in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 121.1% during the 4th quarter. Y.D. More Investments Ltd now owns 126 shares of the company’s stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 69 shares during the period. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich bought a new stake in Willis Towers Watson Public during the fourth quarter valued at about $49,000. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its stake in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 95.5% in the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 174 shares of the company’s stock worth $55,000 after acquiring an additional 85 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors 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.