Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company $WTW Shares Acquired by Crawford Investment Counsel Inc.

Crawford Investment Counsel Inc. increased its holdings in Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company (NASDAQ:WTW) by 4.4% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 331,058 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 14,003 shares during the period. Willis Towers Watson Public accounts for 1.9% of Crawford Investment Counsel Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 14th largest holding. Crawford Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in Willis Towers Watson Public were worth $114,364,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Quadcap Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in Willis Towers Watson Public by 4.8% in the 2nd quarter. Quadcap Wealth Management LLC now owns 747 shares of the company’s stock worth $229,000 after buying an additional 34 shares during the last quarter. Wedmont Private Capital grew its holdings in Willis Towers Watson Public by 3.8% in the 3rd quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 919 shares of the company’s stock valued at $322,000 after buying an additional 34 shares during the period. World Investment Advisors increased its stake in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 4.7% during the 3rd quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 779 shares of the company’s stock valued at $269,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Ethic Inc. increased its stake in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 0.3% during the 3rd quarter. Ethic Inc. now owns 14,050 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,853,000 after acquiring an additional 36 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Gateway Investment Advisers LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 1.7% during the 3rd quarter. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC now owns 2,284 shares of the company’s stock worth $789,000 after acquiring an additional 38 shares during the period. 93.09% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Willis Towers Watson Public Stock Up 1.0%

Shares of NASDAQ:WTW opened at $289.54 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 2.21 and a current ratio of 2.21. Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company has a 1 year low of $275.60 and a 1 year high of $352.79. The stock has a market capitalization of $27.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.68, a PEG ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 0.62. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $310.68 and a 200-day simple moving average of $322.70.

Willis Towers Watson Public (NASDAQ:WTW) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 3rd. The company reported $8.12 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $7.93 by $0.19. The firm had revenue of $2.94 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.87 billion. Willis Towers Watson Public had a net margin of 16.53% and a return on equity of 20.91%. Willis Towers Watson Public’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $8.13 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company will post 17.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Willis Towers Watson Public Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st will be given a $0.96 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 31st. This is an increase from Willis Towers Watson Public’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.92. This represents a $3.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.3%. Willis Towers Watson Public’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 22.47%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently issued reports on WTW. Cantor Fitzgerald decreased their target price on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from $365.00 to $345.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 14th. Mizuho dropped their price target on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from $392.00 to $358.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 27th. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from $351.00 to $366.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, February 9th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public in a report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public from $398.00 to $409.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $373.14.

Willis Towers Watson Public Profile

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.