Artisan Partners Limited Partnership Reduces Stock Holdings in Willis Towers Watson Public Limited (NASDAQ:WTW)

Artisan Partners Limited Partnership cut its position in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public Limited (NASDAQ:WTW) by 0.1% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 3,496,104 shares of the company’s stock after selling 3,689 shares during the quarter. Willis Towers Watson Public makes up approximately 1.6% of Artisan Partners Limited Partnership’s portfolio, making the stock its 13th biggest position. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership’s holdings in Willis Towers Watson Public were worth $1,095,120,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of WTW. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its holdings in Willis Towers Watson Public by 277.8% in the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 844,417 shares of the company’s stock valued at $248,706,000 after acquiring an additional 620,926 shares during the last quarter. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec lifted its stake in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 47,515.7% in the 3rd quarter. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec now owns 499,965 shares of the company’s stock valued at $147,255,000 after purchasing an additional 498,915 shares during the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 33,979.6% during the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 458,370 shares of the company’s stock worth $143,580,000 after purchasing an additional 457,025 shares during the period. Canoe Financial LP acquired a new stake in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public during the 4th quarter worth about $47,883,000. Finally, Cidel Asset Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Willis Towers Watson Public in the 4th quarter valued at about $42,964,000. 93.09% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Willis Towers Watson Public Trading Up 0.2 %

WTW opened at $338.59 on Thursday. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $327.63 and a 200 day moving average price of $312.84. 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 Limited has a 12 month low of $245.04 and a 12 month high of $344.14. The stock has a market capitalization of $33.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -338.59, a PEG ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 0.71.

Willis Towers Watson Public (NASDAQ:WTW) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $8.13 EPS 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 business had revenue of $3.04 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.05 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $7.44 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Willis Towers Watson Public Limited will post 17.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Willis Towers Watson Public Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be issued a dividend of $0.92 per share. This represents a $3.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.09%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend 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 -368.00%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WTW has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from $378.00 to $387.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Evercore ISI upgraded shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $357.00 to $373.00 in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. UBS Group upgraded shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $344.00 to $395.00 in a report on Tuesday, March 18th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target 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. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Willis Towers Watson Public from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $352.00 to $382.00 in a research report on Friday, December 20th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $346.15.

Insider Buying and Selling at Willis Towers Watson Public

In other news, insider Julie Jarecke Gebauer sold 3,384 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the insider now owns 74,417 shares in the company, valued at approximately $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 can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 0.22% 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.