Willis Towers Watson Public (NASDAQ:WTW) Upgraded by Citigroup to “Strong-Buy” Rating

Citigroup upgraded shares of Willis Towers Watson Public (NASDAQ:WTW) from a hold rating to a strong-buy rating in a research report sent to investors on Wednesday morning, MarketBeat reports. Citigroup currently has $300.00 price target on the stock.

A number of other brokerages have also recently issued reports on WTW. Bank of America cut their target price on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from $354.00 to $347.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 14th. Barclays dropped their price target on Willis Towers Watson Public from $341.00 to $322.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 8th. BMO Capital Markets raised Willis Towers Watson Public from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and cut their price target for the stock from $347.00 to $300.00 in a report on Friday, May 1st. Truist Financial upgraded Willis Towers Watson Public to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Piper Sandler dropped their target price on Willis Towers Watson Public from $341.00 to $283.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Willis Towers Watson Public presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $352.00.

Willis Towers Watson Public Stock Performance

Shares of WTW opened at $252.41 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $23.84 billion, a PE ratio of 14.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 0.45. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $290.09 and its 200 day moving average price is $310.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 2.92 and a quick ratio of 2.92. Willis Towers Watson Public has a 12-month low of $246.60 and a 12-month high of $352.79.

Willis Towers Watson Public (NASDAQ:WTW) last issued its earnings results on Friday, May 1st. The company reported $3.72 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.65 by $0.07. Willis Towers Watson Public had a net margin of 16.84% and a return on equity of 21.52%. The company had revenue of $2.41 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.41 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $3.13 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 8.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that Willis Towers Watson Public will post 19.51 EPS for the current year.

Willis Towers Watson Public Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 31st were issued a $0.96 dividend. This is a positive change from Willis Towers Watson Public’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.92. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 31st. This represents a $3.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.5%. Willis Towers Watson Public’s dividend payout ratio is currently 22.39%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Willis Towers Watson Public news, insider Lucy Clarke bought 1,896 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 6th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $263.37 per share, for a total transaction of $499,349.52. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 22,717 shares in the company, valued at $5,982,976.29. The trade was a 9.11% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.40% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Mediolanum International Funds Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public during the 1st quarter worth about $842,000. Bessemer Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 21.1% in the first quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 1,640 shares of the company’s stock valued at $476,000 after acquiring an additional 286 shares in the last quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC increased its stake in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 12.9% during the first quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC now owns 19,493 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,667,000 after acquiring an additional 2,222 shares during the period. D.A. Davidson & CO. raised its holdings in Willis Towers Watson Public by 13.5% during the first quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 16,648 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,840,000 after purchasing an additional 1,976 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its holdings in Willis Towers Watson Public by 6.5% during the first quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 505,357 shares of the company’s stock worth $146,907,000 after purchasing an additional 30,887 shares in the last quarter. 93.09% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Key Headlines Impacting Willis Towers Watson Public

Here are the key news stories impacting Willis Towers Watson Public this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Citigroup upgraded WTW from “hold” to “strong‑buy,” a near‑term bullish catalyst that typically supports buying interest. Citigroup upgrades Willis Towers Watson
• Positive Sentiment: Insider Lucy Clarke purchased 1,896 shares (~$499k) on May 6, increasing her stake ~9%, which investors often view as management confidence in the stock. Lucy Clarke Purchases 1,896 Shares of WTW
• Positive Sentiment: WTW-funded partnership with Cornell University to study correlated catastrophes highlights the firm’s thought leadership in risk analytics and could support product differentiation in reinsurance and analytics services. Willis and Cornell University launch partnership
• Neutral Sentiment: Mizuho trimmed its price target from $353 to $338 while keeping an outperform view — a downgrade to the target that narrows upside projections but still implies meaningful potential above the current price. Mizuho lowers price target on WTW
• Neutral Sentiment: WTW published industry research (AI pay and talent survey) and other reports that reinforce its data/consulting franchise; these are credibility positives but have less immediate impact on near‑term revenue. WTW AI and digital talent salary survey
• Negative Sentiment: WTW’s Specialty Insurance Marketplace Survey found specialty insurance rates softened faster than expected — a market trend that could pressure brokers’ commission pools and client spending in segments important to WTW. Specialty insurance rates soften — WTW survey
• Negative Sentiment: MarketWatch flagged WTW as underperforming peers recently — investor focus on relative performance can accelerate selling even when company‑specific news is mixed. WTW underperforms competitors

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.