Willis Towers - WTW STOCK NEWS

WTW's analysis of 361 Fortune 1000 companies' defined benefit pension plans shows only modest improvement in funded status for 2024, reaching 100% from 98% in 2023. Despite strong U.S. equity market performance and rising interest rates, pension plan assets declined by 8% to $1.12 trillion, with average investment returns of 3%.

Pension obligations decreased from $1.25 trillion to $1.12 trillion due to higher interest rates and pension risk transfer activity. While domestic large-cap equities increased by 25% and small/mid-cap equities rose by 12%, long corporate and government bonds saw losses of -2% and -6% respectively.

The moderate improvement in funded status reflects a shift in pension plan investment strategy, with assets now less concentrated in equities and more focused on bonds for liability-hedging, providing funded status stability.

WTW (NASDAQ: WTW) has announced the completion of its TRANZACT sale to private equity firm GTCR and digital services investor Recognize. The divestiture represents a strategic move to streamline the company's core offerings, as stated by CEO Carl Hess. This transaction aligns with WTW's portfolio optimization strategy, aimed at accelerating performance and enhancing operational efficiency to generate long-term value.

WTW's Salary Budget Planning Report reveals that U.S. salary increase budgets are projected to remain stable at 3.7% in 2025, compared to 3.8% in 2024, still above the pre-pandemic norm of 3%. The average increase in total payroll was 5.5% in 2024.

Companies reducing salary budgets cite weaker financial results (36%) and cost management (34%) as main reasons, while those increasing budgets point to inflation (39%) and labor market concerns (31%). Employee attraction and retention difficulties decreased to 36%, down 9 percentage points from last year.

Organizations are focusing on workplace improvements, with 54% emphasizing DEI, 53% enhancing employee experience, and 52% offering flexible work arrangements.

WTW's latest global study reveals U.S. companies are refining their approach to ESG metrics in executive compensation, focusing on better business alignment. 77% of S&P 500 companies included at least one ESG metric in executive incentive plans, unchanged from last year but up from 52% four years ago. Despite recent DEI backlash, 57% of U.S. companies maintain DEI metrics, with 26 companies adding and 35 removing or planning to remove such metrics.

The study found that ESG metrics yield about 10% higher payout than financial metrics among S&P 500 companies, raising concerns about goalsetting rigor. Globally, 81% of companies use ESG metrics, with 77% implementing them in short-term incentives and 29% in long-term incentives. Human capital metrics remain most popular, used by 72% of S&P 500 companies and 73% globally.

WTW (NASDAQ: WTW) has announced that its Board of Directors has approved a regular quarterly cash dividend of $0.88 per common share for the quarter ended September 30, 2024. The dividend will be paid on or around January 15, 2025 to shareholders who are on record at the close of business on December 31, 2024. This announcement comes from the global advisory, broking and solutions company based in London.

WTW has released its latest Political Risk Index highlighting increased threats from 'gray zone aggression' - actions used to weaken countries through means short of war. The report identifies rising risks to vessels, undersea cables, and offshore installations, particularly from Russia and Iran's disregard for maritime laws.

The research reveals that 69% of respondents experienced geopolitically-related supply chain disruptions in 2024, including gray zone attacks on global shipping. Three main types of flashpoints were identified: military conflicts, fragile states, and ideological polarization.

Key concerns include the growth of the global shadow fleet for oil exports, insurance coverage disruptions, and emerging aerospace sector threats like GPS jamming. The report suggests these attacks are increasing due to interconnected global relationships and new technologies enabling hybrid warfare tactics.

WTW hosted its 2024 Investor Day to present its strategy for growth and value creation. The company outlined key initiatives including accelerating performance through innovation, enhancing efficiency for margin expansion, and optimizing portfolio through strategic investments. CEO Carl Hess highlighted the company's successful execution of Grow, Simplify and Transform priorities over the past three years. Additionally, WTW announced a new joint venture with Bain Capital to re-enter the treaty reinsurance broking market, where WTW will hold a minority stake.

WTW's Thinking Ahead Institute reports that the world's top 100 asset owners' assets grew by 12.3% in 2023, reaching a record $26.3 trillion, recovering from an 8.7% decline in 2022. Sovereign wealth funds (SWFs) now manage 38.9% of AO100 assets, while pension funds, despite holding the largest share at 51.2%, showed the lowest growth at 8.9%. The Government Pension Investment Fund of Japan remains the largest asset owner with $1.59 trillion AuM. EMEA leads regional distribution with 34.3% of total AuM, followed by Asia Pacific (33.0%) and North America (32.7%).

WTW (NASDAQ: WTW) announced its Board of Directors has approved a $1 billion increase to its existing share repurchase program. This addition complements the approximately $660 million remaining from the current open-ended repurchase authority. The company's decision to repurchase shares will be based on various factors, including market conditions, legal requirements, and business considerations.