Willis Towers Watson Public Limited (NASDAQ:WTW) Stock Holdings Lifted by Vanguard Group Inc.

Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in Willis Towers Watson Public Limited (NASDAQ:WTW - Free Report) by 0.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 11,434,062 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 12,802 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. owned approximately 11.35% of Willis Towers Watson Public worth $3,581,606,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Willis Towers Watson Public

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

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Willis Towers Watson Public Stock Performance

WTW stock traded up $0.18 on Wednesday, reaching $338.11. The company's stock had a trading volume of 131,502 shares, compared to its average volume of 558,934. 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 $33.71 billion, a P/E ratio of -338.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 0.71. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $327.12 and a two-hundred day moving average of $312.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 1.98 and a quick ratio of 1.72.

Willis Towers Watson Public (NASDAQ:WTW - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $8.13 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $8.01 by $0.12. Willis Towers Watson Public had a positive return on equity of 20.02% and a negative net margin of 0.99%. The firm had revenue of $3.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.05 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $7.44 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, 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 declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be given a $0.92 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. This is a boost from Willis Towers Watson Public's previous quarterly dividend of $0.88. This represents a $3.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.09%. Willis Towers Watson Public's payout ratio is -368.00%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

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

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.