Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company (NASDAQ:WTW) Short Interest Update

Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company (NASDAQ:WTW) was the recipient of a large decrease in short interest during the month of January. As of January 15th, there was short interest totaling 2,514,813 shares, a decrease of 35.7% from the December 31st total of 3,909,211 shares. Approximately 2.6% of the company’s stock are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 463,628 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 5.4 days. Based on an average daily volume of 463,628 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 5.4 days. Approximately 2.6% of the company’s stock are short sold.

Institutional Trading of Willis Towers Watson Public

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in WTW. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in Willis Towers Watson Public by 0.9% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 11,372,970 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,928,792,000 after purchasing an additional 103,784 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its stake in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 2.4% in the second quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 6,238,308 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,912,041,000 after buying an additional 146,104 shares in the last quarter. Dodge & Cox lifted its stake in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 184.1% in the third quarter. Dodge & Cox now owns 3,632,191 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,254,740,000 after buying an additional 2,353,768 shares in the last quarter. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership boosted its position in Willis Towers Watson Public by 1.8% during the second quarter. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership now owns 3,579,098 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,096,994,000 after acquiring an additional 62,570 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Willis Towers Watson Public by 0.8% during the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,591,115 shares of the company’s stock valued at $790,908,000 after acquiring an additional 19,384 shares in the last quarter. 93.09% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Willis Towers Watson Public Stock Up 0.4%

Willis Towers Watson Public stock opened at $317.47 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $30.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 0.63. Willis Towers Watson Public has a 52 week low of $292.97 and a 52 week high of $352.79. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $325.72 and its 200 day moving average price is $326.81. The company has a quick ratio of 1.69, a current ratio of 1.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61.

Willis Towers Watson Public (NASDAQ:WTW) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The company reported $3.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.05 by $0.02. Willis Towers Watson Public had a net margin of 21.58% and a return on equity of 21.46%. The business had revenue of $2.29 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.28 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.93 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up .0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Willis Towers Watson Public will post 17.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Willis Towers Watson Public Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 15th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, December 31st were issued a dividend of $0.92 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, December 31st. This represents a $3.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.2%. Willis Towers Watson Public’s dividend payout ratio is presently 17.52%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WTW has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from $303.00 to $318.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. Evercore ISI reduced their price target on Willis Towers Watson Public from $387.00 to $383.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. Piper Sandler lowered their price objective on Willis Towers Watson Public from $387.00 to $356.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 31st. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Willis Towers Watson Public from $356.00 to $366.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 13th. Finally, Mizuho started coverage on Willis Towers Watson Public in a research report on Tuesday, December 16th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $386.00 target price on the stock. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $369.08.

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.