Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company (NASDAQ:WTW) Sees Significant Decline in Short Interest

Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company (NASDAQ:WTW) was the target of a large decrease in short interest in the month of April. As of April 15th, there was short interest totaling 2,069,787 shares, a decrease of 25.2% from the March 31st total of 2,766,650 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 598,812 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 3.5 days. Approximately 2.2% of the shares of the stock are sold short.

Willis Towers Watson Public Trading Down 14.3%

NASDAQ:WTW traded down $41.46 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $248.65. 433,580 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 732,469. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $292.61 and its 200-day moving average is $311.97. Willis Towers Watson Public has a 12-month low of $246.60 and a 12-month high of $352.79. The firm has a market capitalization of $23.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.21, a P/E/G ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 0.62. The company has a current ratio of 2.21, a quick ratio of 2.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71.

Willis Towers Watson Public (NASDAQ:WTW) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, May 1st. The company reported $3.72 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.21 by $0.51. Willis Towers Watson Public had a return on equity of 20.91% and a net margin of 16.53%.The company had revenue of $2.41 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.45 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $3.13 EPS. Willis Towers Watson Public’s quarterly revenue was up 8.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Willis Towers Watson Public will post 19.51 EPS for the current year.

Willis Towers Watson Public Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st were paid a $0.96 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 31st. This is a positive change from Willis Towers Watson Public’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.92. This represents a $3.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.5%. Willis Towers Watson Public’s payout ratio is 23.44%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently issued reports on WTW shares. Evercore upped their price objective on Willis Towers Watson Public from $383.00 to $390.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on Willis Towers Watson Public from $379.00 to $351.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 9th. Barclays decreased their price objective on Willis Towers Watson Public from $341.00 to $322.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 8th. Cantor Fitzgerald decreased their price objective on Willis Towers Watson Public from $363.00 to $354.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 9th. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on Willis Towers Watson Public from $330.00 to $320.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $366.29.

Institutional Trading of Willis Towers Watson Public

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Brighton Jones LLC raised its stake in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 4.7% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 1,368 shares of the company’s stock valued at $429,000 after acquiring an additional 61 shares in the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 7.6% during the first quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 2,588 shares of the company’s stock valued at $875,000 after acquiring an additional 182 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC raised its stake in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 16.9% during the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 2,400 shares of the company’s stock valued at $811,000 after acquiring an additional 347 shares in the last quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 38.6% during the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 140 shares of the company’s stock valued at $47,000 after acquiring an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP raised its stake in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 12.6% during the second quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 14,806 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,538,000 after acquiring an additional 1,659 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.09% of the company’s stock.

Willis Towers Watson Public Company Profile

Willis Towers Watson Public (NASDAQ: WTW) is a global advisory, broking and solutions company that helps organizations manage risk, optimize benefits and cultivate talent. The firm combines insurance brokerage and risk management capabilities with human capital and benefits consulting, actuarial and analytics services, and technology-enabled solutions. Willis Towers Watson serves a broad client base that includes multinational and mid-sized corporations, public sector organizations, insurers and investment managers.

The company’s core activities encompass commercial and reinsurance brokerage, risk transfer and risk-financing advice, and claims advocacy, alongside employee benefits and retirement consulting.