Analysts Set Willis Towers Watson Public Limited (NASDAQ:WTW) Price Target at $312.27

Willis Towers Watson Public Limited (NASDAQ:WTW) has been given an average recommendation of “Hold” by the sixteen research firms that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, seven have assigned a hold recommendation and eight have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $312.27.

Several analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Barclays initiated coverage on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public in a research report on Wednesday, September 4th. They set an “underweight” rating and a $278.00 price target on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on Willis Towers Watson Public from $352.00 to $359.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Roth Mkm raised their price objective on Willis Towers Watson Public from $315.00 to $345.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. UBS Group raised shares of Willis Towers Watson Public to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from $295.00 to $314.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th.

Willis Towers Watson Public Stock Performance

Shares of WTW stock opened at $314.80 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $31.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -43.24, a PEG ratio of 1.98 and a beta of 0.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 1.72 and a current ratio of 1.72. Willis Towers Watson Public has a 52 week low of $234.01 and a 52 week high of $320.77. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $295.64 and a 200 day simple moving average of $276.22.

Willis Towers Watson Public (NASDAQ:WTW) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $2.93 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.68 by $0.25. Willis Towers Watson Public had a negative net margin of 7.36% and a positive return on equity of 18.57%. The company had revenue of $2.29 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.28 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.24 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 5.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Willis Towers Watson Public will post 16.66 earnings per share for the current year.

Willis Towers Watson Public Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Investors of record on Monday, September 30th were issued a $0.88 dividend. This represents a $3.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.12%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 30th. Willis Towers Watson Public’s payout ratio is presently -48.35%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in WTW. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new position in Willis Towers Watson Public in the third quarter valued at $27,000. American National Bank bought a new position in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public in the 2nd quarter worth about $36,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new position in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public in the 3rd quarter valued at about $41,000. Beacon Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 136.5% during the 1st quarter. Beacon Capital Management LLC now owns 175 shares of the company’s stock valued at $48,000 after purchasing an additional 101 shares in the last quarter. Finally, New Millennium Group LLC acquired a new stake in Willis Towers Watson Public during the second quarter worth approximately $54,000. Institutional investors own 93.09% of the company’s stock.

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.