Willis Towers Watson Public (NASDAQ:WTW) Sets New 1-Year Low – Here’s Why

Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company (NASDAQ:WTW)’s stock price reached a new 52-week low on Tuesday . The company traded as low as $283.60 and last traded at $290.09, with a volume of 2081239 shares. The stock had previously closed at $330.04.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Truist Financial upped their price target on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from $380.00 to $400.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Willis Towers Watson Public from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, February 7th. Cantor Fitzgerald dropped their target price on Willis Towers Watson Public from $365.00 to $345.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 14th. Evercore boosted their price target on Willis Towers Watson Public from $383.00 to $390.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. Finally, Piper Sandler dropped their price objective on Willis Towers Watson Public from $387.00 to $356.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 31st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $374.57.

Willis Towers Watson Public Trading Up 1.0%

The company has a 50 day moving average of $324.06 and a two-hundred day moving average of $326.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 1.69 and a current ratio of 2.21. The stock has a market capitalization of $27.10 billion, a PE ratio of 17.28, a P/E/G ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 0.62.

Willis Towers Watson Public (NASDAQ:WTW) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 3rd. The company reported $8.12 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $7.93 by $0.19. Willis Towers Watson Public had a return on equity of 20.91% and a net margin of 16.53%.The business had revenue of $2.94 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.87 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $8.13 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 3.3% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company will post 17.32 EPS for the current year.

Willis Towers Watson Public Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 15th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, December 31st were given a dividend of $0.92 per share. This represents a $3.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, December 31st. Willis Towers Watson Public’s payout ratio is currently 22.47%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Willis Towers Watson Public

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Dodge & Cox increased its position in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 184.1% in the 3rd quarter. Dodge & Cox now owns 3,632,191 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,254,740,000 after acquiring an additional 2,353,768 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Willis Towers Watson Public during the 4th quarter worth about $511,151,000. Soundwatch Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Willis Towers Watson Public during the 2nd quarter valued at about $272,790,000. Bank of Montreal Can increased its holdings in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 657.3% in the fourth quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 941,637 shares of the company’s stock valued at $309,422,000 after purchasing an additional 817,301 shares during the period. Finally, Alliancebernstein L.P. raised its stake in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 80.2% in the second quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 1,038,275 shares of the company’s stock worth $318,231,000 after purchasing an additional 462,249 shares during the last quarter. 93.09% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.