Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company (NASDAQ:WTW) Receives Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Shares of Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company (NASDAQ:WTW) have earned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the eighteen brokerages that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price objective among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $369.3750.

A number of brokerages recently commented on WTW. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Willis Towers Watson Public from $341.00 to $378.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, July 31st. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from $316.00 to $385.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Cantor Fitzgerald increased their price objective on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from $344.00 to $380.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. Mizuho boosted their target price on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from $338.00 to $361.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from $315.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 19th.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Willis Towers Watson Public

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in WTW. Legal & General Group Plc increased its position in Willis Towers Watson Public by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 690,210 shares of the company’s stock valued at $226,803,000 after acquiring an additional 10,697 shares during the period. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 45.7% during the fourth quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 20,225 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,646,000 after acquiring an additional 6,340 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public during the fourth quarter worth $511,151,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. grew its stake in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 945.0% in the fourth quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 57,641 shares of the company’s stock worth $18,941,000 after purchasing an additional 52,125 shares during the last quarter. Finally, National Pension Service increased its holdings in Willis Towers Watson Public by 6.1% in the fourth quarter. National Pension Service now owns 158,741 shares of the company’s stock valued at $52,162,000 after purchasing an additional 9,112 shares during the period. 93.09% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Willis Towers Watson Public Trading Down 1.1%

Shares of WTW stock opened at $343.12 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 1.68, a quick ratio of 1.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74. The stock has a market cap of $31.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.99 and a beta of 0.42. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $305.13 and a 200 day simple moving average of $288.56. Willis Towers Watson Public has a 1 year low of $240.61 and a 1 year high of $352.79.

Willis Towers Watson Public (NASDAQ:WTW) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 30th. The company reported $3.35 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.12 by $0.23. The firm had revenue of $2.47 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.42 billion. Willis Towers Watson Public had a return on equity of 22.19% and a net margin of 15.49%.The company’s revenue was up 9.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.86 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Willis Towers Watson Public will post 19.82 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

About Willis Towers Watson Public

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.