Schroder Investment Management Group Grows Stock Holdings in Willis Towers Watson Public Limited (NASDAQ:WTW)

Schroder Investment Management Group increased its holdings in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public Limited (NASDAQ:WTW - Free Report) by 67.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 56,851 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 22,859 shares during the quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group owned 0.06% of Willis Towers Watson Public worth $17,758,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WTW. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public during the fourth quarter worth about $484,210,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC grew its position in Willis Towers Watson Public by 33,979.6% during the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 458,370 shares of the company's stock worth $143,580,000 after purchasing an additional 457,025 shares during the last quarter. Canoe Financial LP acquired a new position in Willis Towers Watson Public during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $47,883,000. Cidel Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public in the fourth quarter worth $42,964,000. Finally, World Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public during the third quarter worth $39,999,000. 93.09% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WTW has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Willis Towers Watson Public from $380.00 to $345.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Willis Towers Watson Public from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $352.00 to $382.00 in a research note on Friday, December 20th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on Willis Towers Watson Public from $378.00 to $387.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Evercore ISI upgraded shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from an "in-line" rating to an "outperform" rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $357.00 to $373.00 in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, UBS Group upgraded shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $344.00 to $395.00 in a research note on Tuesday, March 18th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $346.15.

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Willis Towers Watson Public Price Performance

WTW traded down $7.79 during trading on Monday, hitting $301.01. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,166,916 shares, compared to its average volume of 552,842. The firm has a market capitalization of $30.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -301.01, a P/E/G ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 0.68. Willis Towers Watson Public Limited has a twelve month low of $245.04 and a twelve month high of $344.14. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $328.73 and its 200 day simple moving average is $315.12. The company has a current ratio of 1.98, a quick ratio of 1.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66.

Willis Towers Watson Public (NASDAQ:WTW - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $8.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $8.01 by $0.12. The firm 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 firm's revenue for the quarter was up 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $7.44 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Willis Towers Watson Public Limited will post 17.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Willis Towers Watson Public Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st will be given a dividend of $0.92 per share. This represents a $3.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.22%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. This is an increase from Willis Towers Watson Public's previous quarterly dividend of $0.88. Willis Towers Watson Public's dividend payout ratio is -368.00%.

Insider Activity at Willis Towers Watson Public

In related news, insider Julie Jarecke Gebauer sold 3,384 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 74,417 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $24,986,996.09. This represents a 4.35 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.22% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.