Blue Trust Inc. Boosts Stake in Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company (NASDAQ:WTW)

Blue Trust Inc. raised its position in Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company (NASDAQ:WTW) by 8.9% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,797 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 147 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc.’s holdings in Willis Towers Watson Public were worth $607,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WTW. McIlrath & Eck LLC purchased a new position in Willis Towers Watson Public in the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. GeoWealth Management LLC boosted its position in Willis Towers Watson Public by 94.9% in the 4th quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC now owns 115 shares of the company’s stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 56 shares during the last quarter. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich purchased a new position in Willis Towers Watson Public in the 4th quarter valued at about $49,000. Park Square Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in Willis Towers Watson Public in the 4th quarter valued at about $62,000. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its position in Willis Towers Watson Public by 57.5% in the 1st quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 274 shares of the company’s stock valued at $93,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. 93.09% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on WTW shares. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price objective on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from $373.00 to $371.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from $302.00 to $316.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price objective on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from $371.00 to $366.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 28th. Finally, UBS Group upgraded shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the company from $344.00 to $395.00 in a research note on Tuesday, March 18th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $356.30.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Andrew Jay Krasner sold 1,600 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $315.75, for a total transaction of $505,200.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 11,982 shares in the company, valued at $3,783,316.50. This represents 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 available through this hyperlink. 0.32% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Willis Towers Watson Public Stock Performance

Shares of Willis Towers Watson Public stock opened at $299.00 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $29.65 billion, a PE ratio of -597.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.55 and a beta of 0.70. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $309.29 and its 200-day simple moving average is $317.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a quick ratio of 1.89 and a current ratio of 1.89. Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company has a 1 year low of $255.19 and a 1 year high of $344.14.

Willis Towers Watson Public (NASDAQ:WTW) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $3.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.27 by ($0.14). The company had revenue of $2.22 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.29 billion. Willis Towers Watson Public had a negative net margin of 0.54% and a positive return on equity of 20.53%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 5.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $3.13 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company will post 17.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Willis Towers Watson Public Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Monday, June 30th will be paid a dividend of $0.92 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 30th. This represents a $3.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.23%. Willis Towers Watson Public’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -736.00%.

Willis Towers Watson Public 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.