Cantor Fitzgerald Cuts Willis Towers Watson Public (NASDAQ:WTW) Price Target to $345.00

Willis Towers Watson Public (NASDAQ:WTW) had its price objective trimmed by Cantor Fitzgerald from $365.00 to $345.00 in a research note published on Wednesday morning,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a neutral rating on the stock.

Other equities analysts also recently issued reports about the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from $375.00 to $388.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. Evercore ISI dropped their target price on Willis Towers Watson Public from $387.00 to $383.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. Barclays increased their price target on Willis Towers Watson Public from $303.00 to $318.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 8th. Mizuho initiated coverage on Willis Towers Watson Public in a report on Tuesday, December 16th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $386.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered Willis Towers Watson Public from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday, November 28th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Willis Towers Watson Public presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $369.08.

Willis Towers Watson Public Stock Performance

NASDAQ WTW opened at $329.41 on Wednesday. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $325.63 and its 200-day moving average price is $325.91. Willis Towers Watson Public has a fifty-two week low of $292.97 and a fifty-two week high of $352.79. The company has a market cap of $31.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.68, a P/E/G ratio of 1.58 and a beta of 0.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a quick ratio of 1.69 and a current ratio of 1.69.

Willis Towers Watson Public (NASDAQ:WTW) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 30th. The company reported $3.07 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.05 by $0.02. Willis Towers Watson Public had a net margin of 21.58% and a return on equity of 21.46%. The company had revenue of $2.29 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.28 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.93 earnings per share. Willis Towers Watson Public’s quarterly revenue was up .0% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Willis Towers Watson Public will post 17.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Willis Towers Watson Public Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 15th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, December 31st were given a dividend of $0.92 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, December 31st. This represents a $3.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.1%. Willis Towers Watson Public’s payout ratio is 17.52%.

Institutional Trading of Willis Towers Watson Public

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in Willis Towers Watson Public by 0.9% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 11,372,970 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,928,792,000 after acquiring an additional 103,784 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its position in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 2.4% in the 2nd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 6,238,308 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,912,041,000 after purchasing an additional 146,104 shares during the period. Dodge & Cox lifted its position in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 184.1% in the 3rd quarter. Dodge & Cox now owns 3,632,191 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,254,740,000 after purchasing an additional 2,353,768 shares during the period. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership boosted its stake in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 1.8% during the second quarter. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership now owns 3,579,098 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,096,994,000 after purchasing an additional 62,570 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Willis Towers Watson Public by 0.8% during the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,591,115 shares of the company’s stock valued at $790,908,000 after buying an additional 19,384 shares during the period. 93.09% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.