Willis Towers Watson Public (NASDAQ:WTW) Reaches New 1-Year High – What’s Next?

Willis Towers Watson Public Limited (NASDAQ:WTW) hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $342.17 and last traded at $340.36, with a volume of 535361 shares. The stock had previously closed at $339.65.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have issued reports on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on Willis Towers Watson Public from $378.00 to $387.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 10th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on Willis Towers Watson Public from $380.00 to $345.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Evercore ISI raised Willis Towers Watson Public from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $357.00 to $373.00 in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Raymond James raised Willis Towers Watson Public from an “outperform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $365.00 to $400.00 in a report on Thursday, December 5th. Finally, Barclays lifted their price target on Willis Towers Watson Public from $278.00 to $302.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $342.08.

Willis Towers Watson Public Trading Up 0.2 %

The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $322.10 and a 200 day simple moving average of $308.38. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $33.35 billion, a PE ratio of -334.50, a P/E/G ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 0.74.

Willis Towers Watson Public (NASDAQ:WTW) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $8.13 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $8.01 by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $3.04 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.05 billion. Willis Towers Watson Public had a positive return on equity of 20.02% and a negative net margin of 0.99%. The firm’s revenue was up 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $7.44 EPS. Analysts predict that Willis Towers Watson Public Limited will post 17.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal 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 paid 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 yield of 1.10%. Willis Towers Watson Public’s dividend payout ratio is currently -368.00%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Willis Towers Watson Public

In other Willis Towers Watson Public 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 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 transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.22% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Willis Towers Watson Public

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in WTW. Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its position in Willis Towers Watson Public by 22.2% during the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 237 shares of the company’s stock worth $70,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares during the period. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. increased its position in Willis Towers Watson Public by 10.1% during the 3rd quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 109,103 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,134,000 after purchasing an additional 9,970 shares during the period. National Pension Service increased its position in Willis Towers Watson Public by 1.7% during the 3rd quarter. National Pension Service now owns 152,530 shares of the company’s stock worth $44,925,000 after purchasing an additional 2,529 shares during the period. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. increased its position in Willis Towers Watson Public by 5.7% during the 3rd quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 40,585 shares of the company’s stock worth $11,954,000 after purchasing an additional 2,192 shares during the period. Finally, QRG Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 5.8% in the 3rd quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 19,828 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,840,000 after acquiring an additional 1,086 shares during the period. 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.