First Fiduciary Investment Counsel Inc. Sells 732 Shares of Willis Towers Watson Public Limited (NASDAQ:WTW)

First Fiduciary Investment Counsel Inc. lessened its holdings in Willis Towers Watson Public Limited (NASDAQ:WTW) by 1.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 42,662 shares of the company’s stock after selling 732 shares during the quarter. Willis Towers Watson Public accounts for approximately 2.3% of First Fiduciary Investment Counsel Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 20th biggest position. First Fiduciary Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in Willis Towers Watson Public were worth $10,290,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of WTW. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust raised its stake in Willis Towers Watson Public by 19.7% during the fourth quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 249 shares of the company’s stock worth $60,000 after acquiring an additional 41 shares in the last quarter. Brighton Jones LLC increased its stake in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 4.3% in the third quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 1,253 shares of the company’s stock valued at $262,000 after buying an additional 52 shares during the period. Strs Ohio increased its stake in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 0.6% in the third quarter. Strs Ohio now owns 8,829 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,844,000 after buying an additional 55 shares during the period. Kestra Advisory Services LLC increased its stake in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 3.6% in the third quarter. Kestra Advisory Services LLC now owns 1,743 shares of the company’s stock valued at $364,000 after buying an additional 60 shares during the period. Finally, Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC increased its stake in shares of Willis Towers Watson Public by 3.6% in the fourth quarter. Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC now owns 1,721 shares of the company’s stock valued at $411,000 after buying an additional 60 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 93.09% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently issued reports on WTW. Citigroup raised Willis Towers Watson Public from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $236.00 to $315.00 in a research note on Monday, February 12th. Raymond James reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $315.00 price objective (up previously from $295.00) on shares of Willis Towers Watson Public in a research note on Thursday, March 28th. Evercore ISI upped their target price on Willis Towers Watson Public from $290.00 to $295.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a report on Friday. Piper Sandler upped their target price on Willis Towers Watson Public from $297.00 to $303.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday. Finally, TD Cowen started coverage on Willis Towers Watson Public in a report on Wednesday, January 10th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $316.00 target price on the stock. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $293.43.

Willis Towers Watson Public Price Performance

Willis Towers Watson Public stock opened at $250.95 on Friday. Willis Towers Watson Public Limited has a 52-week low of $195.29 and a 52-week high of $278.86. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $269.96 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $251.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 1.45 and a current ratio of 1.89. The stock has a market capitalization of $25.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.17, a PEG ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 0.73.

Willis Towers Watson Public (NASDAQ:WTW) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The company reported $3.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.21 by $0.08. Willis Towers Watson Public had a return on equity of 16.31% and a net margin of 10.88%. The company had revenue of $2.34 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.37 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.84 EPS. Willis Towers Watson Public’s quarterly revenue was up 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that Willis Towers Watson Public Limited will post 16.25 earnings per share for the current year.

Willis Towers Watson Public Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 15th. Investors of record on Sunday, March 31st were given a $0.88 dividend. This is a positive change from Willis Towers Watson Public’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.84. This represents a $3.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.40%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 27th. Willis Towers Watson Public’s dividend payout ratio is presently 35.31%.

Insider Activity at Willis Towers Watson Public

In other news, CFO Andrew Jay Krasner sold 1,100 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $272.13, for a total transaction of $299,343.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 4,170 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,134,782.10. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.22% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

About Willis Towers Watson Public

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.