Willis Towers Watson Public (NASDAQ:WTW) Upgraded at Barclays

Barclays upgraded shares of Willis Towers Watson Public (NASDAQ:WTW) from an underweight rating to an equal weight rating in a report issued on Wednesday, MarketBeat Ratings reports. They currently have $341.00 price target on the stock, up from their prior price target of $318.00.

A number of other research analysts also recently commented on the company. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public in a research note on Monday, December 29th. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from $398.00 to $409.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, February 9th. Truist Financial boosted their target price on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from $380.00 to $400.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. Piper Sandler cut their price target on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from $365.00 to $341.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 23rd. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from $375.00 to $388.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $373.14.

Willis Towers Watson Public Trading Up 1.0%

Shares of NASDAQ:WTW opened at $289.54 on Wednesday. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $310.68 and its 200 day simple moving average is $322.77. Willis Towers Watson Public has a 1 year low of $275.60 and a 1 year high of $352.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 2.21 and a quick ratio of 2.21. The company has a market capitalization of $27.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.68, a P/E/G ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 0.62.

Willis Towers Watson Public (NASDAQ:WTW) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 3rd. The company reported $8.12 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $7.93 by $0.19. The firm had revenue of $2.94 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.87 billion. Willis Towers Watson Public had a return on equity of 20.91% and a net margin of 16.53%.The company’s quarterly revenue was down 3.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $8.13 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Willis Towers Watson Public will post 17.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Willis Towers Watson Public Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 31st will be given a dividend of $0.96 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 31st. This represents a $3.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.3%. This is an increase from Willis Towers Watson Public’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.92. Willis Towers Watson Public’s dividend payout ratio is 22.47%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Willis Towers Watson Public

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Alpine Bank Wealth Management acquired a new position in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public in the third quarter worth approximately $25,000. Bartlett & CO. Wealth Management LLC increased its position in Willis Towers Watson Public by 375.0% during the 4th quarter. Bartlett & CO. Wealth Management LLC now owns 76 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares during the period. SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. raised its holdings in Willis Towers Watson Public by 8,200.0% during the 3rd quarter. SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. now owns 83 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 82 shares during the last quarter. MV Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in Willis Towers Watson Public during the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 72.5% in the 4th quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 88 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 93.09% of the company’s stock.

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.