Victory Capital Management Inc. Cuts Position in Willis Towers Watson Public Limited (NASDAQ:WTW)

Victory Capital Management Inc. trimmed its position in Willis Towers Watson Public Limited (NASDAQ:WTW) by 1.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,969,936 shares of the company’s stock after selling 32,231 shares during the quarter. Willis Towers Watson Public accounts for approximately 0.6% of Victory Capital Management Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 14th largest holding. Victory Capital Management Inc. owned about 1.96% of Willis Towers Watson Public worth $617,063,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new stake in Willis Towers Watson Public during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Y.D. More Investments Ltd raised its stake in Willis Towers Watson Public by 121.1% during the 4th quarter. Y.D. More Investments Ltd now owns 126 shares of the company’s stock valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 69 shares in the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new stake in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public in the 3rd quarter worth $41,000. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its stake in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 95.5% in the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 174 shares of the company’s stock worth $55,000 after buying an additional 85 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Golden State Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public in the 4th quarter worth $72,000. 93.09% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Willis Towers Watson Public Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:WTW opened at $340.36 on Tuesday. Willis Towers Watson Public Limited has a fifty-two week low of $245.04 and a fifty-two week high of $342.17. The business has a 50-day moving average of $321.37 and a two-hundred day moving average of $307.81. The stock has a market capitalization of $33.93 billion, a P/E ratio of -340.36, a P/E/G ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 0.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 1.98 and a quick ratio of 1.72.

Willis Towers Watson Public (NASDAQ:WTW) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $8.13 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $8.01 by $0.12. Willis Towers Watson Public had a positive return on equity of 20.02% and a negative net margin of 0.99%. The company had revenue of $3.04 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.05 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $7.44 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that Willis Towers Watson Public Limited will post 17.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Willis Towers Watson Public Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st will be given a dividend of $0.92 per share. This represents a $3.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.08%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. This is a boost from Willis Towers Watson Public’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.88. Willis Towers Watson Public’s payout ratio is currently -368.00%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently commented on the company. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on Willis Towers Watson Public from $380.00 to $345.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Barclays boosted their target price on Willis Towers Watson Public from $278.00 to $302.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. Raymond James raised Willis Towers Watson Public from an “outperform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $365.00 to $400.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. Evercore ISI upgraded Willis Towers Watson Public from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $357.00 to $373.00 in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on Willis Towers Watson Public from $378.00 to $387.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Willis Towers Watson Public has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $342.08.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Willis Towers Watson Public news, insider Julie Jarecke Gebauer sold 3,384 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $335.77, for a total value of $1,136,245.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 74,417 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $24,986,996.09. This represents a 4.35 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.22% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Willis Towers Watson Public Company Profile

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.