Willis Towers Watson (WLTW)

TotalReturn:

'Total return is the amount of value an investor earns from a security over a specific period, typically one year, when all distributions are reinvested. Total return is expressed as a percentage of the amount invested. For example, a total return of 20% means the security increased by 20% of its original value due to a price increase, distribution of dividends (if a stock), coupons (if a bond) or capital gains (if a fund). Total return is a strong measure of an investment’s overall performance.'

• The total return, or performance over 5 years of Willis Towers Watson is 96.2%, which is lower, thus worse compared to the benchmark SPY (121.8%) in the same period.
• Looking at total return in of 59.1% in the period of the last 3 years, we see it is relatively greater, thus better in comparison to SPY (52.8%).

CAGR:

'The compound annual growth rate (CAGR) is a useful measure of growth over multiple time periods. It can be thought of as the growth rate that gets you from the initial investment value to the ending investment value if you assume that the investment has been compounding over the time period.'

• Looking at the compounded annual growth rate (CAGR) of 14.4% in the last 5 years of Willis Towers Watson, we see it is relatively smaller, thus worse in comparison to the benchmark SPY (17.3%)
• During the last 3 years, the annual performance (CAGR) is 16.7%, which is greater, thus better than the value of 15.3% from the benchmark.

Volatility:

'Volatility is a rate at which the price of a security increases or decreases for a given set of returns. Volatility is measured by calculating the standard deviation of the annualized returns over a given period of time. It shows the range to which the price of a security may increase or decrease. Volatility measures the risk of a security. It is used in option pricing formula to gauge the fluctuations in the returns of the underlying assets. Volatility indicates the pricing behavior of the security and helps estimate the fluctuations that may happen in a short period of time.'

• Compared with the benchmark SPY (17.9%) in the period of the last 5 years, the historical 30 days volatility of 25.5% of Willis Towers Watson is higher, thus worse.
• Looking at 30 days standard deviation in of 29.7% in the period of the last 3 years, we see it is relatively larger, thus worse in comparison to SPY (18.4%).

DownVol:

'Downside risk is the financial risk associated with losses. That is, it is the risk of the actual return being below the expected return, or the uncertainty about the magnitude of that difference. Risk measures typically quantify the downside risk, whereas the standard deviation (an example of a deviation risk measure) measures both the upside and downside risk. Specifically, downside risk in our definition is the semi-deviation, that is the standard deviation of all negative returns.'

• Compared with the benchmark SPY (12.4%) in the period of the last 5 years, the downside deviation of 17.8% of Willis Towers Watson is greater, thus worse.
• During the last 3 years, the downside volatility is 20.7%, which is greater, thus worse than the value of 12.4% from the benchmark.

Sharpe:

'The Sharpe ratio is the measure of risk-adjusted return of a financial portfolio. Sharpe ratio is a measure of excess portfolio return over the risk-free rate relative to its standard deviation. Normally, the 90-day Treasury bill rate is taken as the proxy for risk-free rate. A portfolio with a higher Sharpe ratio is considered superior relative to its peers. The measure was named after William F Sharpe, a Nobel laureate and professor of finance, emeritus at Stanford University.'

• The ratio of return and volatility (Sharpe) over 5 years of Willis Towers Watson is 0.47, which is lower, thus worse compared to the benchmark SPY (0.83) in the same period.
• Looking at risk / return profile (Sharpe) in of 0.48 in the period of the last 3 years, we see it is relatively smaller, thus worse in comparison to SPY (0.7).

Sortino:

'The Sortino ratio, a variation of the Sharpe ratio only factors in the downside, or negative volatility, rather than the total volatility used in calculating the Sharpe ratio. The theory behind the Sortino variation is that upside volatility is a plus for the investment, and it, therefore, should not be included in the risk calculation. Therefore, the Sortino ratio takes upside volatility out of the equation and uses only the downside standard deviation in its calculation instead of the total standard deviation that is used in calculating the Sharpe ratio.'

• Compared with the benchmark SPY (1.19) in the period of the last 5 years, the ratio of annual return and downside deviation of 0.67 of Willis Towers Watson is smaller, thus worse.
• During the last 3 years, the downside risk / excess return profile is 0.68, which is lower, thus worse than the value of 1.03 from the benchmark.

Ulcer:

'Ulcer Index is a method for measuring investment risk that addresses the real concerns of investors, unlike the widely used standard deviation of return. UI is a measure of the depth and duration of drawdowns in prices from earlier highs. Using Ulcer Index instead of standard deviation can lead to very different conclusions about investment risk and risk-adjusted return, especially when evaluating strategies that seek to avoid major declines in portfolio value (market timing, dynamic asset allocation, hedge funds, etc.). The Ulcer Index was originally developed in 1987. Since then, it has been widely recognized and adopted by the investment community. According to Nelson Freeburg, editor of Formula Research, Ulcer Index is “perhaps the most fully realized statistical portrait of risk there is.'

• Looking at the Downside risk index of 7.99 in the last 5 years of Willis Towers Watson, we see it is relatively lower, thus better in comparison to the benchmark SPY (8.48 )
• During the last 3 years, the Ulcer Index is 9.23 , which is greater, thus worse than the value of 5.55 from the benchmark.

MaxDD:

'Maximum drawdown is defined as the peak-to-trough decline of an investment during a specific period. It is usually quoted as a percentage of the peak value. The maximum drawdown can be calculated based on absolute returns, in order to identify strategies that suffer less during market downturns, such as low-volatility strategies. However, the maximum drawdown can also be calculated based on returns relative to a benchmark index, for identifying strategies that show steady outperformance over time.'

• Compared with the benchmark SPY (-24.5 days) in the period of the last 5 years, the maximum DrawDown of -32.9 days of Willis Towers Watson is lower, thus worse.
• During the last 3 years, the maximum drop from peak to valley is -32.9 days, which is smaller, thus worse than the value of -18.8 days from the benchmark.

MaxDuration:

'The Drawdown Duration is the length of any peak to peak period, or the time between new equity highs. The Max Drawdown Duration is the worst (the maximum/longest) amount of time an investment has seen between peaks (equity highs). Many assume Max DD Duration is the length of time between new highs during which the Max DD (magnitude) occurred. But that isn’t always the case. The Max DD duration is the longest time between peaks, period. So it could be the time when the program also had its biggest peak to valley loss (and usually is, because the program needs a long time to recover from the largest loss), but it doesn’t have to be'

• Looking at the maximum days below previous high of 252 days in the last 5 years of Willis Towers Watson, we see it is relatively smaller, thus better in comparison to the benchmark SPY (488 days)
• Looking at maximum time in days below previous high water mark in of 252 days in the period of the last 3 years, we see it is relatively higher, thus worse in comparison to SPY (199 days).

AveDuration:

'The Average Drawdown Duration is an extension of the Maximum Drawdown. However, this metric does not explain the drawdown in dollars or percentages, rather in days, weeks, or months. The Avg Drawdown Duration is the average amount of time an investment has seen between peaks (equity highs), or in other terms the average of time under water of all drawdowns. So in contrast to the Maximum duration it does not measure only one drawdown event but calculates the average of all.'

• The average days below previous high over 5 years of Willis Towers Watson is 60 days, which is smaller, thus better compared to the benchmark SPY (119 days) in the same period.
• During the last 3 years, the average time in days below previous high water mark is 77 days, which is higher, thus worse than the value of 45 days from the benchmark.