Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. Sells 121,600 Shares of Willis Towers Watson Public Limited (NASDAQ:WTW)

Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. lessened its holdings in Willis Towers Watson Public Limited (NASDAQ:WTW - Free Report) by 35.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 224,088 shares of the company's stock after selling 121,600 shares during the period. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. owned 0.22% of Willis Towers Watson Public worth $70,193,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its holdings in Willis Towers Watson Public by 24.9% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 187,267 shares of the company's stock worth $55,156,000 after purchasing an additional 37,340 shares during the last quarter. Everence Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public during the fourth quarter worth $993,000. Sanctuary Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 2.7% in the fourth quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 4,135 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,364,000 after acquiring an additional 109 shares during the period. Sunriver Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Sunriver Management LLC now owns 175,627 shares of the company's stock valued at $55,013,000 after acquiring an additional 1,223 shares during the period. Finally, World Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public in the third quarter valued at about $39,999,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.09% of the company's stock.

Willis Towers Watson Public Stock Up 0.3 %

Shares of NASDAQ:WTW opened at $325.68 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 1.72 and a current ratio of 1.98. Willis Towers Watson Public Limited has a 52-week low of $245.04 and a 52-week high of $344.14. The company has a market capitalization of $32.47 billion, a PE ratio of -325.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 0.68. The company has a fifty day moving average of $327.13 and a 200-day moving average of $317.19.

Willis Towers Watson Public (NASDAQ:WTW - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results 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 business's quarterly revenue was up 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $7.44 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Willis Towers Watson Public Limited will post 17.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Willis Towers Watson Public Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st were given a dividend of $0.92 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was 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 1.13%. Willis Towers Watson Public's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -368.00%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Julie Jarecke Gebauer sold 3,384 shares of Willis Towers Watson Public stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $335.77, for a total value of $1,136,245.68. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 74,417 shares of the company's stock, valued at $24,986,996.09. The trade was a 4.35 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.32% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WTW has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Evercore ISI raised shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from an "in-line" rating to an "outperform" rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $357.00 to $373.00 in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Barclays boosted their price target on Willis Towers Watson Public from $302.00 to $316.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research note on Friday, April 11th. UBS Group upgraded Willis Towers Watson Public from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $344.00 to $395.00 in a research note on Tuesday, March 18th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $387.00 target price on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price target on Willis Towers Watson Public from $373.00 to $371.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 11th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Willis Towers Watson Public has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $346.38.

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.

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