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What's in the Cards for Willis Towers (WTW) in Q2 Earnings?

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Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company (WTW - Free Report) is set to report second-quarter 2023 earnings on Jul 27, before market open.

What do the Estimates Say

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for second-quarter earnings per share (EPS) of $2.38 has remained steady for the past 30 days. The estimate indicates a 2.6% increase from the year-ago quarter’s reported EPS of $2.32.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for revenues is pegged at $2.1 billion, suggesting a rise of 4.7% from the year-ago quarter’s reported figure.

Willis Towers’ earnings beat estimates in each of the trailing four quarters, the average surprise being 1.2%. This is depicted in the graph below.

Factors at Play

Willis Towers’ second-quarter revenues are likely to have benefited from improved performance at wealth businesses, career businesses, health and Benefits Delivery & Outsourcing businesses. Our estimate for the segment’s revenues is pegged at $2.1 billion, indicating an increase of 2.7% from the year-ago quarter.

Insurance Consulting and Technology's organic revenues are expected to have benefited from improving sales and retention in technology solutions.

In the second quarter, the wealth businesses are likely to have gained from higher levels of project work across all regions, actuarial valuation activity, new administration clients in North America and client acquisitions. The upside is likely to have been partially offset by a decline in the Investments business due to the negative impact of capital market performance received in the prior year.

Career businesses, comprising Work & Rewards and Employee Experience businesses, are likely to have been driven by strong client demand for talent and compensation products, advisory services, survey offerings, compensation benchmarking products and project activity. Increased reward-based advisory services and expanded sales of compensation benchmarking surveys are also likely to have added to the upside.

Health revenues in the second quarter are likely to have benefited from portfolio growth and new client appointments in Europe and international, as well as increased project work in North America and continued expansion of local portfolios. We expect health, wealth and career revenue growth of 4.7% in the second quarter.

Growth in Benefits Delivery & Outsourcing is likely to have been driven by Medicare Advantage sales and its expanded client base, new projects and client activities in Europe and North America.

Expenses in the quarter to be reported are likely to have decreased because of lower depreciation and amortization. The downside is likely to have been partially offset by higher salaries and benefits, other operating expenses, restructuring costs and transaction and transformation costs. The company’s margins are expected to have improved as more savings result from its transformation program.

What the Zacks Model Unveils

Our proven model does not conclusively predict an earnings beat for Willis Towers this time. This is because a stock needs to have the right combination of a positive Earnings ESP and a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), 2 (Buy) or 3 (Hold), which is not the case here.

Earnings ESP: Willis Towers has an Earnings ESP of -3.28%. This is because the Most Accurate Estimate is pegged at $2.30, lower than the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $2.38. You can uncover the best stocks to buy or sell before they’re reported with our Earnings ESP Filter.

Zacks Rank: Willis Towers carries a Zacks Rank of 3.

Stocks to Consider

Here are some companies from the broader Finance space that you may want to consider, as our model shows that these have the right combination of elements to post an earnings beat this time around:

Arch Capital Group Ltd. (ACGL - Free Report) has an Earnings ESP of +1.57% and is a Zacks #3 Ranked player.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Arch Capital’s bottom line for the to-be-reported quarter is pegged at $1.65 per share, which witnessed no movement in the past week. The consensus estimate for ACGL’s revenues is pegged at $3.1 billion.

Globe Life Inc. (GL - Free Report) has an Earnings ESP of +0.78% and carries a Zacks Rank of 2. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for GL’s bottom line for the to-be-reported quarter is pegged at $2.57 per share, indicating 24.2% year-over-year growth. The estimate witnessed two upward revisions in the past 30 days against one in the opposite direction. GL beat earnings estimates in each of the past four quarters, with an average surprise of 2.1%.

Goosehead Insurance, Inc (GSHD - Free Report) has an Earnings ESP of +20.81% and carries a Zacks Rank of 3.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for GSHD’s bottom line for the to-be-reported quarter is pegged at $0.30 per share, suggesting an 87.5% year-over-year increase. The estimate witnessed one upward revision in the past month against none in the opposite direction. GSHD beat earnings estimates in two of the past four quarters, missed twice, with an average surprise of 86%.

Stay on top of upcoming earnings announcements with the Zacks Earnings Calendar.

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