Pictet Asset Management Holding SA Purchases 14,299 Shares of Willis Towers Watson Public Limited (NASDAQ:WTW)

Pictet Asset Management Holding SA grew its stake in Willis Towers Watson Public Limited (NASDAQ:WTW - Free Report) by 21.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 81,835 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 14,299 shares during the period. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA owned 0.08% of Willis Towers Watson Public worth $25,634,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Y.D. More Investments Ltd lifted its holdings in Willis Towers Watson Public by 121.1% in the fourth quarter. Y.D. More Investments Ltd now owns 126 shares of the company's stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 69 shares during the period. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich bought a new position in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public in the 4th quarter worth about $49,000. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its stake in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 95.5% in the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 174 shares of the company's stock valued at $55,000 after purchasing an additional 85 shares during the period. Golden State Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public during the 4th quarter valued at about $72,000. Finally, Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public during the 4th quarter valued at about $76,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.09% of the company's stock.

Willis Towers Watson Public Stock Down 7.5 %

Shares of NASDAQ:WTW traded down $25.07 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $307.34. 822,293 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 545,925. The stock has a market cap of $30.64 billion, a P/E ratio of -307.36, a P/E/G ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 0.71. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $329.57 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $314.62. Willis Towers Watson Public Limited has a 12-month low of $245.04 and a 12-month 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.

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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, topping the consensus estimate of $8.01 by $0.12. Willis Towers Watson Public had a negative net margin of 0.99% and a positive return on equity of 20.02%. The firm had revenue of $3.04 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.05 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $7.44 EPS. The business's revenue was up 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Willis Towers Watson Public Limited will post 17.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Willis Towers Watson Public Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be given a dividend of $0.92 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $3.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.20%. This is a boost from Willis Towers Watson Public's previous quarterly dividend of $0.88. Willis Towers Watson Public's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -368.00%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have issued reports on WTW shares. Raymond James raised Willis Towers Watson Public from an "outperform" rating to a "strong-buy" rating and boosted their price target for the company from $365.00 to $400.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. UBS Group upgraded shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their target price for the company from $344.00 to $395.00 in a research report on Tuesday, March 18th. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their target price for the stock from $352.00 to $382.00 in a research note on Friday, December 20th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from $378.00 to $387.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, January 10th. Finally, Evercore ISI raised Willis Towers Watson Public from an "in-line" rating to an "outperform" rating and upped their price target for the stock from $357.00 to $373.00 in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Willis Towers Watson Public has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $346.15.

Insider Transactions at Willis Towers Watson Public

In related news, insider Julie Jarecke Gebauer sold 3,384 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 28th. The shares were 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 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 can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.22% of the company's stock.

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.