Deroy & Devereaux Private Investment Counsel Inc. Sells 461 Shares of Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company $WTW

Deroy & Devereaux Private Investment Counsel Inc. trimmed its stake in Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company (NASDAQ:WTW) by 0.5% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 86,498 shares of the company’s stock after selling 461 shares during the period. Deroy & Devereaux Private Investment Counsel Inc. owned 0.09% of Willis Towers Watson Public worth $26,512,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC raised its position in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 1.8% in the 1st quarter. Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC now owns 2,018 shares of the company’s stock worth $682,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB raised its position in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 10.1% in the 2nd quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 392 shares of the company’s stock worth $120,000 after acquiring an additional 36 shares in the last quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 38.6% in the 1st quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 140 shares of the company’s stock worth $47,000 after acquiring an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. Brighton Jones LLC increased its position in Willis Towers Watson Public by 2.9% during the 1st quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 1,408 shares of the company’s stock valued at $476,000 after buying an additional 40 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mather Group LLC. increased its position in Willis Towers Watson Public by 6.2% during the 1st quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 718 shares of the company’s stock valued at $243,000 after buying an additional 42 shares in the last quarter. 93.09% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Willis Towers Watson Public Stock Up 2.0%

Shares of WTW stock opened at $343.31 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $335.29 and its 200-day simple moving average is $318.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a quick ratio of 1.90 and a current ratio of 1.90. The firm has a market capitalization of $33.49 billion, a PE ratio of 235.15, a P/E/G ratio of 2.68 and a beta of 0.73. Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company has a fifty-two week low of $287.05 and a fifty-two week high of $352.79.

Willis Towers Watson Public (NASDAQ:WTW) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 31st. The company reported $2.86 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.65 by $0.21. The business had revenue of $2.26 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.23 billion. Willis Towers Watson Public had a return on equity of 21.60% and a net margin of 1.40%.The company’s revenue was down .2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.55 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company will post 17.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Willis Towers Watson Public announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase program on Thursday, September 18th that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to buy up to 4.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Willis Towers Watson Public Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 30th will be issued a $0.92 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 30th. This represents a $3.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.1%. Willis Towers Watson Public’s dividend payout ratio is currently 252.05%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently issued reports on WTW. Citigroup began coverage on Willis Towers Watson Public in a research report on Wednesday, August 13th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $351.00 target price on the stock. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. UBS Group upped their target price on Willis Towers Watson Public from $395.00 to $398.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Willis Towers Watson Public from $377.00 to $382.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their target price on Willis Towers Watson Public from $373.00 to $387.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 1st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have issued a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell 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 $369.42.

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.