Soumya Eswaran
3 min read
In This Article:
Polen Capital, an investment management company, released its “Polen Global Growth Strategy” first-quarter 2025 investor letter. A copy of the letter can be downloaded here. Global equity markets experienced a surge in volatility in 2025 due to US tariffs, with the "Magnificent 7" falling 15% and semiconductors dropping 19%. U.S. stocks lagged, with international equities surpassing them by nearly 10% due to a weakening dollar and a significant tariff shock after the quarter's close. The Strategy returned -5.18% gross (-5.45 % net) in the quarter compared to the MSCI ACW Index’s -1.32% return. In addition, please check the fund’s top five holdings to know its best picks in 2025.
In its first-quarter 2025 investor letter, Polen Global Growth Strategy highlighted stocks such as Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company (NASDAQ:WTW). Headquartered in London, the United Kingdom, Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company (NASDAQ:WTW) is an advisory, broking, and solutions company. The one-month return of Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company (NASDAQ:WTW) was 1.89%, and its shares gained 21.60% of their value over the last 52 weeks. On May 22, 2025, Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company (NASDAQ:WTW) stock closed at $308.07 per share with a market capitalization of $30.527 billion.
Polen Global Growth Strategy stated the following regarding Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company (NASDAQ:WTW) in its Q1 2025 investor letter:
"Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company (NASDAQ:WTW) is a UK-based global advisory, insurance brokerage, and solutions leader. WTW benefits from robust customer relationships with high switching costs, brand recognition, and scaled distribution in a highly fragmented and durable market. Recent management updates signal a more favorable business mix, continued operational improvements, and increasingly focused capital allocation decisions. These drivers support accelerated revenue growth and margin expansion in the coming years. As a proof point on capital allocation, since regulators blocked the Aon/WTW merger in 2021, WTW repurchased more than 21% of shares outstanding over three years. At current low valuation levels, these buybacks represent low-risk, high-return allocations of capital—an approach we’d welcome more of. Sound execution in a durable growth market should enable a shareholder return profile in the low-to-mid teens."
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Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company (NASDAQ:WTW) is not on our list of 30 Most Popular Stocks Among Hedge Funds. As per our database, 48 hedge fund portfolios held Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company (NASDAQ:WTW) at the end of the fourth quarter compared to 42 in the third quarter. While we acknowledge the potential of Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company (NASDAQ:WTW) as an investment, our conviction lies in the belief that AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns, and doing so within a shorter timeframe. If you are looking for an AI stock that is as promising as NVIDIA but that trades at less than 5 times its earnings, check out our report about the undervalued AI stock set for massive gains.
