Willis Towers Watson Public (NASDAQ:WTW) Price Target Raised to $375.00

Willis Towers Watson Public (NASDAQ:WTW) had its target price upped by Keefe, Bruyette & Woods from $373.00 to $375.00 in a research note issued to investors on Friday morning,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an outperform rating on the stock.

A number of other equities analysts have also weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from $377.00 to $382.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Wall Street Zen cut Willis Towers Watson Public from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday, November 28th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on Willis Towers Watson Public from $335.00 to $345.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, August 18th. Barclays decreased their target price on Willis Towers Watson Public from $341.00 to $303.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, November 20th. Finally, UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from $395.00 to $398.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $365.67.

Willis Towers Watson Public Stock Performance

Shares of Willis Towers Watson Public stock opened at $326.93 on Friday. Willis Towers Watson Public has a 1 year low of $292.97 and a 1 year high of $352.79. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $325.06 and its 200 day moving average is $321.39. The stock has a market cap of $31.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.56, a PEG ratio of 1.79 and a beta of 0.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a current ratio of 1.69 and a quick ratio of 1.69.

Willis Towers Watson Public (NASDAQ:WTW) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 30th. The company reported $3.07 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.05 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $2.29 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.28 billion. Willis Towers Watson Public had a net margin of 21.58% and a return on equity of 21.46%. Willis Towers Watson Public’s revenue was up .0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.93 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Willis Towers Watson Public will post 17.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Willis Towers Watson Public Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 15th. Investors of record on Wednesday, December 31st will be issued a $0.92 dividend. This represents a $3.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, December 31st. Willis Towers Watson Public’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 17.52%.

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

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Willis Towers Watson Public

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in WTW. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its position in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 4.7% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 1,368 shares of the company’s stock worth $429,000 after purchasing an additional 61 shares during the period. Public Sector Pension Investment Board boosted its stake in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 2.4% in the first quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 26,734 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,035,000 after acquiring an additional 623 shares during the period. National Pension Service raised its stake in Willis Towers Watson Public by 0.6% during the 1st quarter. National Pension Service now owns 144,305 shares of the company’s stock valued at $48,768,000 after purchasing an additional 818 shares during the period. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in Willis Towers Watson Public by 13.9% in the 1st quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 2,992 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,011,000 after purchasing an additional 366 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund grew its holdings in Willis Towers Watson Public by 7.9% during the 1st quarter. Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund now owns 31,388 shares of the company’s stock valued at $10,608,000 after buying an additional 2,300 shares in the last quarter. 93.09% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.