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.'

• Looking at the total return of 96.2% in the last 5 years of Willis Towers Watson, we see it is relatively higher, thus better in comparison to the benchmark SPY (86.7%)
• Looking at total return, or increase in value in of 59.1% in the period of the last 3 years, we see it is relatively greater, thus better in comparison to SPY (25.1%).

CAGR:

'The compound annual growth rate isn't a true return rate, but rather a representational figure. It is essentially a number that describes the rate at which an investment would have grown if it had grown the same rate every year and the profits were reinvested at the end of each year. In reality, this sort of performance is unlikely. However, CAGR can be used to smooth returns so that they may be more easily understood when compared to alternative investments.'

• The annual performance (CAGR) over 5 years of Willis Towers Watson is 14.4%, which is greater, thus better compared to the benchmark SPY (13.3%) in the same period.
• During the last 3 years, the annual return (CAGR) is 16.7%, which is greater, thus better than the value of 7.8% from the benchmark.

Volatility:

'In finance, volatility (symbol σ) is the degree of variation of a trading price series over time as measured by the standard deviation of logarithmic returns. Historic volatility measures a time series of past market prices. Implied volatility looks forward in time, being derived from the market price of a market-traded derivative (in particular, an option). Commonly, the higher the volatility, the riskier the security.'

• Compared with the benchmark SPY (20.9%) in the period of the last 5 years, the volatility of 25.5% of Willis Towers Watson is higher, thus worse.
• Looking at volatility in of 29.7% in the period of the last 3 years, we see it is relatively higher, thus worse in comparison to SPY (17.3%).

DownVol:

'The downside volatility is similar to the volatility, or standard deviation, but only takes losing/negative periods into account.'

• Compared with the benchmark SPY (15%) in the period of the last 5 years, the downside deviation of 17.8% of Willis Towers Watson is higher, thus worse.
• Compared with SPY (12.1%) in the period of the last 3 years, the downside volatility of 20.7% is larger, thus worse.

Sharpe:

'The Sharpe ratio (also known as the Sharpe index, the Sharpe measure, and the reward-to-variability ratio) is a way to examine the performance of an investment by adjusting for its risk. The ratio measures the excess return (or risk premium) per unit of deviation in an investment asset or a trading strategy, typically referred to as risk, named after William F. Sharpe.'

• Looking at the Sharpe Ratio of 0.47 in the last 5 years of Willis Towers Watson, we see it is relatively lower, thus worse in comparison to the benchmark SPY (0.52)
• Compared with SPY (0.3) in the period of the last 3 years, the Sharpe Ratio of 0.48 is larger, thus better.

Sortino:

'The Sortino ratio improves upon the Sharpe ratio by isolating downside volatility from total volatility by dividing excess return by the downside deviation. The Sortino ratio is a variation of the Sharpe ratio that differentiates harmful volatility from total overall volatility by using the asset's standard deviation of negative asset returns, called downside deviation. The Sortino ratio takes the asset's return and subtracts the risk-free rate, and then divides that amount by the asset's downside deviation. The ratio was named after Frank A. Sortino.'

• Looking at the downside risk / excess return profile of 0.67 in the last 5 years of Willis Towers Watson, we see it is relatively lower, thus worse in comparison to the benchmark SPY (0.72)
• Compared with SPY (0.43) in the period of the last 3 years, the excess return divided by the downside deviation of 0.68 is larger, thus better.

Ulcer:

'The Ulcer Index is a technical indicator that measures downside risk, in terms of both the depth and duration of price declines. The index increases in value as the price moves farther away from a recent high and falls as the price rises to new highs. The indicator is usually calculated over a 14-day period, with the Ulcer Index showing the percentage drawdown a trader can expect from the high over that period. The greater the value of the Ulcer Index, the longer it takes for a stock to get back to the former high.'

• 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 (9.33 )
• Compared with SPY (10 ) in the period of the last 3 years, the Ulcer Index of 9.23 is smaller, thus better.

MaxDD:

'A maximum drawdown is the maximum loss from a peak to a trough of a portfolio, before a new peak is attained. Maximum Drawdown is an indicator of downside risk over a specified time period. It can be used both as a stand-alone measure or as an input into other metrics such as 'Return over Maximum Drawdown' and the Calmar Ratio. Maximum Drawdown is expressed in percentage terms.'

• Looking at the maximum drop from peak to valley of -32.9 days in the last 5 years of Willis Towers Watson, we see it is relatively larger, thus better in comparison to the benchmark SPY (-33.7 days)
• Compared with SPY (-24.5 days) in the period of the last 3 years, the maximum reduction from previous high of -32.9 days is lower, thus worse.

MaxDuration:

'The Maximum 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. It is the length of time the account was in the Max Drawdown. A Max Drawdown measures a retrenchment from when an equity curve reaches a new high. It’s the maximum an account lost during that retrenchment. This method is applied because a valley can’t be measured until a new high occurs. Once the new high is reached, the percentage change from the old high to the bottom of the largest trough is recorded.'

• 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 lower, thus better in comparison to the benchmark SPY (488 days)
• Compared with SPY (488 days) in the period of the last 3 years, the maximum days under water of 252 days is smaller, thus better.

AveDuration:

'The Drawdown Duration is the length of any peak to peak period, or the time between new equity highs. 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.'

• Looking at the average days under water of 60 days in the last 5 years of Willis Towers Watson, we see it is relatively lower, thus better in comparison to the benchmark SPY (123 days)
• During the last 3 years, the average days below previous high is 77 days, which is lower, thus better than the value of 178 days from the benchmark.