Impax Asset Management Group plc Reduces Stock Position in Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company $WTW

Impax Asset Management Group plc trimmed its position in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company (NASDAQ:WTW) by 6.5% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 18,844 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,304 shares during the quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc’s holdings in Willis Towers Watson Public were worth $5,776,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in WTW. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB lifted its stake in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 10.1% during the 2nd quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 392 shares of the company’s stock worth $120,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares during the period. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. boosted its position in Willis Towers Watson Public by 38.6% during the 1st quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 140 shares of the company’s stock worth $47,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares during the period. Horizon Investments LLC boosted its holdings in Willis Towers Watson Public by 3.2% in the 1st quarter. Horizon Investments LLC now owns 1,433 shares of the company’s stock worth $484,000 after acquiring an additional 45 shares during the period. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Willis Towers Watson Public by 7.3% in the 2nd quarter. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 687 shares of the company’s stock worth $211,000 after buying an additional 47 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Zions Bancorporation National Association UT boosted its holdings in Willis Towers Watson Public by 31.3% in the second quarter. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT now owns 210 shares of the company’s stock valued at $64,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. 93.09% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently commented on WTW. Cantor Fitzgerald started coverage on Willis Towers Watson Public in a research report on Wednesday, August 13th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $355.00 target price for the company. TD Cowen cut their target price on Willis Towers Watson Public from $408.00 to $391.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday. Citigroup started coverage on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public in a report on Wednesday, August 13th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $351.00 price objective for the company. Raymond James Financial restated a “strong-buy” rating and set a $400.00 price objective (up previously from $380.00) on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public in a research report on Monday, September 22nd. Finally, 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 report on Wednesday, October 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Willis Towers Watson Public has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $368.77.

Willis Towers Watson Public Stock Up 1.3%

Shares of WTW opened at $324.30 on Friday. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $332.67 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $319.60. Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company has a 12 month low of $292.97 and a 12 month high of $352.79. The stock has a market cap of $31.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 222.12, a P/E/G ratio of 2.54 and a beta of 0.69. The company has a quick ratio of 1.90, a current ratio of 1.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58.

Willis Towers Watson Public (NASDAQ:WTW) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The company reported $3.07 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.05 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $2.29 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.28 billion. Willis Towers Watson Public had a return on equity of 21.60% and a net margin of 1.40%.Willis Towers Watson Public’s revenue was up .0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.93 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company will post 17.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Willis Towers Watson Public Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, October 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 30th were given a dividend of $0.92 per share. This represents a $3.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, September 30th. Willis Towers Watson Public’s dividend payout ratio is currently 17.52%.

Willis Towers Watson Public declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase program on Thursday, September 18th that permits the company to buyback $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to purchase up to 4.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

About Willis Towers Watson Public

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.