Causeway Capital Management LLC Takes Position in Willis Towers Watson Public Limited (NASDAQ:WTW)

Causeway Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public Limited (NASDAQ:WTW - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 1,563 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $490,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in WTW. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public during the fourth quarter worth about $484,210,000. FMR LLC increased its holdings in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 52.4% in the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,682,939 shares of the company's stock worth $1,153,644,000 after buying an additional 1,266,484 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its holdings in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 6,676.1% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 988,430 shares of the company's stock worth $309,616,000 after acquiring an additional 973,843 shares during the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC grew its position in Willis Towers Watson Public by 33,979.6% in the fourth quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 458,370 shares of the company's stock worth $143,580,000 after acquiring an additional 457,025 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. lifted its stake in Willis Towers Watson Public by 14.7% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 2,228,497 shares of the company's stock worth $698,055,000 after purchasing an additional 285,497 shares during the last quarter. 93.09% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Willis Towers Watson Public Stock Down 1.1 %

WTW traded down $3.73 during trading on Friday, hitting $321.00. 658,731 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 564,106. Willis Towers Watson Public Limited has a 12-month low of $245.04 and a 12-month high of $344.14. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $327.04 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $316.57. 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 $32.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -321.00, a PEG ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 0.68.

Willis Towers Watson Public (NASDAQ:WTW - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $8.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $8.01 by $0.12. The business had revenue of $3.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.05 billion. Willis Towers Watson Public had a negative net margin of 0.99% and a positive return on equity of 20.02%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter 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 company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st were given a $0.92 dividend. This represents a $3.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.15%. This is a boost from Willis Towers Watson Public's previous quarterly dividend of $0.88. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 31st. Willis Towers Watson Public's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -368.00%.

Insider Activity

In other Willis Towers Watson Public news, insider Julie Jarecke Gebauer sold 3,384 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the sale, the insider now owns 74,417 shares in the company, valued at $24,986,996.09. This represents a 4.35 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.32% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have weighed in on WTW shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $387.00 price target on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Evercore ISI upgraded 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 report on Wednesday, January 8th. UBS Group upgraded Willis Towers Watson Public from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $344.00 to $395.00 in a research report on Tuesday, March 18th. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from $302.00 to $316.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Finally, 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 on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $346.38.

Willis Towers Watson Public Company 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.