Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. Raises Holdings in Willis Towers Watson Public Limited (NASDAQ:WTW)

Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public Limited (NASDAQ:WTW) by 3.0% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 154,339 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 4,537 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Willis Towers Watson Public were worth $47,697,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Y.D. More Investments Ltd raised its holdings in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 121.1% in the 4th quarter. Y.D. More Investments Ltd now owns 126 shares of the company’s stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 69 shares during the period. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich purchased a new stake in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public during the 4th quarter worth approximately $49,000. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its position in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 95.5% during the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 174 shares of the company’s stock worth $55,000 after purchasing an additional 85 shares in the last quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public in the 4th quarter valued at about $72,000. Finally, Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public in the 4th quarter valued at about $76,000. 93.09% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Willis Towers Watson Public Trading Down 1.1 %

NASDAQ:WTW opened at $337.16 on Friday. Willis Towers Watson Public Limited has a 1 year low of $245.04 and a 1 year high of $344.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 1.72 and a current ratio of 1.98. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $328.33 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $313.33. The stock has a market capitalization of $33.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -337.16, a PEG ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 0.71.

Willis Towers Watson Public (NASDAQ:WTW) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $8.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $8.01 by $0.12. The business had revenue of $3.04 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.05 billion. Willis Towers Watson Public had a negative net margin of 0.99% and a positive return on equity of 20.02%. The business’s revenue was up 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $7.44 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate 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 business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be given a dividend of $0.92 per share. This represents a $3.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.09%. This is an increase from Willis Towers Watson Public’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.88. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. Willis Towers Watson Public’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -368.00%.

Insider Transactions at Willis Towers Watson Public

In other news, insider Julie Jarecke Gebauer sold 3,384 shares of Willis Towers Watson Public stock in a transaction on Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $335.77, for a total transaction 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. The trade was a 4.35 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WTW has been the subject of a number of research reports. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on Willis Towers Watson Public from $380.00 to $345.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Evercore ISI upgraded shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their price target for the company from $357.00 to $373.00 in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Truist Financial reissued a “buy” rating and set a $380.00 price objective (up from $365.00) on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the company from $352.00 to $382.00 in a report on Friday, December 20th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on Willis Towers Watson Public from $378.00 to $387.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 10th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $346.15.

Willis Towers Watson Public 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.