Crispr Therapeutics shares tumble after significant earnings miss
LONDON - On Thursday, Willis Towers Watson (NASDAQ:WTW) reported second quarter adjusted earnings of $2.86 per share, exceeding analyst expectations of $2.63, while revenue of $2.3 billion topped the consensus estimate of $2.23 billion. The company delivered 5% organic revenue growth despite reported revenue remaining flat YoY due to the sale of its TRANZACT business.
The company’s shares dipped slightly by 0.14% in pre-market trading following the results.
The global advisory and broking firm saw its adjusted operating margin expand by 150 basis points to 18.5% compared to the same period last year. Adjusted EBITDA increased 6% to $470 million, representing 20.8% of revenue.
"Our strong second quarter results demonstrate the meaningful progress we’ve made towards advancing our strategy, helping deliver solid topline results, along with margin and earnings growth," said Carl Hess (NYSE:HES), WTW’s Chief Executive Officer. "I’m pleased with how our businesses continued to prove their value and resilience this quarter."
The Risk & Broking segment led performance with revenue of $1.05 billion, representing 7% growth (6% on an organic basis) from $979 million in the prior year. This segment’s operating margin improved by 60 basis points to 21.2%, driven by strong organic revenue growth and transformation program savings.
Meanwhile, the Health, Wealth & Career segment reported revenue of $1.18 billion, a 6% decrease from the prior year due to the TRANZACT sale, though organic revenue grew 4%. Operating margins in this segment increased 190 basis points to 23.8%.
During the quarter, WTW repurchased 1.6 million shares for $500 million as part of its capital allocation strategy. The company reaffirmed it remains on track to deliver on its financial framework, including mid-single digit organic revenue growth and operating margin expansion.
This article was generated with the support of AI and reviewed by an editor. For more information see our T&C.