Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company Ordinary Shares
WTW · Nasdaq
Next quarter
Expected to report Feb 2, 2027 — estimated from last year’s reporting date.
Consensus is $9.18 EPS for Dec 2026 across 8 estimates, ranging $9.00 to $9.40.
WTW Sep 2026
- 0.83%
- $3.60
- $3.63
- —
- $2.40B
Reported results
- $2.40B
- $429.00M
- 17.85%
- $303.00M
- $3.24
Highlights
- Adjusted earnings: Adjusted diluted EPS was $3.63, up 18% year over year and 0.83% above the $3.60 consensus; GAAP diluted EPS was $3.24 versus $3.11 a year ago.
- Organic growth: Revenue rose 8% to $2.46 billion, while organic growth was 4%; revenue was $2.43 billion in Q2 FY2026.
- Margin expansion: Adjusted operating margin increased 150 basis points to 21.9%, although the $13 million office-building sale gain contributed about $0.11 to adjusted EPS; excluding that gain, margin expansion was 100 basis points.
- Segment performance: HWC organic revenue grew 4% and R&B grew 5%; segment operating margins expanded 90 basis points to 29.5% and 100 basis points to 19.8%, respectively.
- HWC outlook reduced: Full-year HWC organic growth guidance moved to low-to-mid-single digits from mid-single digits, as large BD&O client implementations shifted into 2027 and Career faces timing and Middle East headwinds.
- Propel investment: The AI and automation plan targets $350 million of net annual run-rate savings and approximately 30% adjusted operating margin by 2028, after $625 million of expected cash costs and $50 million reinvested in growth.
- Cash generation and buybacks: Nine-month free cash flow rose $226 million to $1.064 billion; WTW repurchased $220 million of shares in Q3 and $970 million year to date, and expects full-year repurchases to exceed $1 billion.
Analysis
WTW’s third quarter combined steady organic growth with stronger adjusted profitability. Revenue of $2.46 billion increased 8% year over year, including 4% organic growth, and was modestly above Q2’s $2.43 billion. Adjusted diluted EPS of $3.63 grew 18% from $3.07 and narrowly exceeded the $3.60 consensus; GAAP diluted EPS was $3.24, up from $3.11 a year ago and $2.43 in Q2. Net income attributable to WTW was nearly flat year over year at $303 million, while adjusted operating margin expanded 150 basis points to 21.9%. The $13 million building-sale gain contributed approximately $0.11 per adjusted share, leaving 100 basis points of adjusted margin expansion after excluding it.
Both segments grew organically, with R&B’s 5% growth ahead of HWC’s 4%, and both expanded operating margins. The main change to the outlook was in HWC: delayed large-client implementations pushed into next year and a more cautious Career outlook lowered full-year segment growth expectations to low-to-mid-single digits. Enterprise guidance remained mid-single-digit organic growth, toward the lower end, with continued margin expansion. Propel is the longer-term operational initiative behind the margin ambition: WTW has begun the program, reporting $18 million of annualized savings to date, but expects most investment and savings to ramp from 2027. Nine-month free cash flow improved to $1.064 billion, supporting continued repurchases.
Earnings and margins
Revenue increased 8% to $2.46 billion, while organic revenue growth was 4%, reflecting the contribution from acquisitions and no material currency lift in the quarter. Adjusted net income rose 13% to $339 million and adjusted diluted EPS increased 18% to $3.63, compared with $3.07 a year ago. The EPS result edged past the supplied $3.60 consensus. GAAP income from operations rose 3% to $429 million, but GAAP operating margin declined 90 basis points to 17.4%.
- Adjusted profitability: Adjusted operating income increased 15% to $539 million and adjusted margin rose 150 basis points to 21.9%. Adjusted EBITDA was $577 million, or 23.5% of revenue, up from $515 million and 22.5%.
- One-off contribution: The $13 million gain on office-building sales added about $0.11 to adjusted EPS. Excluding it, adjusted margin expansion was 100 basis points, driven by operating leverage and expense discipline.
- Other EPS factors: Lower interest income and a larger loss from the Willis Re investment offset the building-sale benefit; foreign exchange added $0.02 to adjusted EPS.
Risk & Broking
R&B delivered the stronger organic growth of the two segments, despite softer insurance pricing across most lines. Revenue was $1.087 billion, up 8% reported and 5% organically; excluding book-of-business settlements and interest income, organic growth was 4%. North American new business and international activity supported Corporate Risk & Broking, while a tough comparison from prior-year multi-year specialty placements weighed on parts of Europe. Management expects R&B growth to accelerate sequentially in Q4 and retained its full-year mid-single-digit growth and approximately 100-basis-point margin-expansion expectations.
- Corporate Risk & Broking: Organic growth was 5%, led by North America and international markets, with specialty lines including construction and surety contributing to new business. Q3 included $18 million of R&B book-of-business settlements.
- Insurance Consulting and Technology: Organic growth was 2%; software sales, including Radar, were strong, while consulting revenue declined as clients deferred discretionary projects. WTW now expects low-single-digit full-year ICT growth.
- Segment margin: Operating income rose 14% to $216 million and operating margin expanded 100 basis points to 19.8%, helped by settlements and disciplined expense management.
HWC growth and guidance
HWC generated $1.35 billion of revenue, up 7% reported and 4% organically, with operating income up 10% to $398 million and margin up 90 basis points to 29.5%. Health and Career led growth, while Wealth grew modestly and BD&O declined. Management lowered full-year HWC organic growth expectations to low-to-mid-single digits from mid-single digits, but said the underlying demand outlook remained intact.
- Health and Wealth: Health grew 6% organically on new business, renewals and project work, with strength across regions; full-year growth is still expected in the high single digits. Wealth grew 2%, with full-year growth expected at the high end of the low-single-digit range.
- Career and BD&O: Career grew 9%, partly reflecting the return to typical compensation-survey delivery timing; WTW narrowed its full-year outlook to low-single-digit growth, citing that timing and Middle East pressures. BD&O declined 2% as lower Individual Marketplace commissions outweighed modest outsourcing growth.
- Implementation timing: Three large Individual Marketplace clients, representing 75,000 retirees, postponed implementations into 2027. WTW cited its strongest sales cycle in over a decade and said the client commitments remain; it now expects BD&O to be roughly flat for 2026, versus prior low-single-digit growth.
Propel AI plan
Propel, approved in July and running through 2028, is intended to embed AI and automation in client delivery and internal processes. WTW expects approximately $400 million of annual run-rate savings, reinvesting about $50 million to support growth and targeting $350 million of net annual savings and approximately 30% adjusted operating margin in 2028. The program requires approximately $625 million of cash costs and $25 million of non-cash charges, a cash-cost-to-achieve ratio of about 1.6 times.
- Early progress and costs: By September 30, annualized run-rate savings were $18 million. Q3 incurred $14 million of restructuring costs and $7 million of transaction and program expenses under Propel.
- Timing: Management said savings and investment should ramp in earnest in 2027 and compound through 2028. R&B’s expected margin benefits are more weighted toward 2028, while HWC improvements are expected to build more evenly.
- Examples in deployment: WTW reported an AI-enabled administration process operating across 160 vendors and more than 20 clients, and plans to extend its Neuron operating model to 10 additional countries in Q4.
Cash and capital
Operating cash flow for the first nine months was $1.213 billion, versus $1.004 billion a year ago, and free cash flow increased to $1.064 billion from $838 million. The $226 million improvement was primarily attributed to operating-margin expansion and included $29 million of proceeds from building sales. WTW expects full-year free-cash-flow-margin improvement while funding Propel.
- Shareholder returns: Q3 repurchases were $220 million, alongside $89 million of quarterly dividends. Year-to-date repurchases reached $970 million, and management expects full-year buybacks to exceed $1 billion, subject to market conditions and investment opportunities.
- Liquidity and investment: Cash and cash equivalents were $1.946 billion at September 30, down from $3.132 billion at year-end, reflecting acquisitions, repurchases and dividends, partly offset by operating cash generation. WTW also reported $1.103 billion of cash outflows for acquisitions in the first nine months.
