Re/insurance broker WTW has reported organic revenue growth of 4% in the fourth quarter of 2021 and 6% for the full year, boosted by positive organic results within its Investment, Risk & Reinsurance (IRR) segment.
The IRR segment posted huge organic change of 32% for the quarter and 16% for the year, despite its revenue shrinking by 2% to $199 million and by 12% to $814 million for the same respective periods.
It should be noted that IRR revenue now excludes the Reinsurance line of business which has been reported as discontinued operations, following the sale of Willis Re to Gallagher in December.
This deal was entered into back in August 2021, when WTW’s merger with Aon was still on the cards, and resulted in a total upfront cash consideration of $3.25 billion plus an earnout payable in 2025 of up to $750 million in cash.
WTW’s overall revenue increased by 1% to $2.71 billion for Q4 and by 4% to $9.00 billion for the full year.
Income from operations for the fourth quarter of 2021 made up $690 million, or 25.5% of revenue, an increase from $579 million or 21.7% of revenue in the fourth quarter of the prior year.
Meanwhile, net income, including discontinued operations, was $2.4 billion, representing an increase of 405% from $476 million for the prior-year fourth quarter.
For the year, income from operations was $2.2 billion, or 24.5% of revenue, an increase from $859 million or 10.0% of revenue compared to the prior year.
And net income was $4.2 billion, representing an increase of 324% from $996 million for the same period in the prior year.
“The fourth quarter marked the end of a solid fiscal year at WTW,” said Carl Hess, WTW’s Chief Executive Officer. For the year, we delivered revenue growth and meaningful margin expansion. While the results are in line with our expectations, they do not fully reflect the near and long-term potential of the Company.”
“Looking ahead to 2022, we remain committed to doing the work that’s needed to strengthen performance. Our hiring levels have increased and we expect that the impacts of previous colleague departures will subside helping us to deliver long-term organic growth and margin expansion in line with our Investor Day expectations,” he continued.
“Our new global leadership team has been working diligently on our new path forward as we look to execute on our strategic priorities. We are squarely focused on delivering on our targets and I am confident that the actions we are taking will create value for our clients, colleagues and shareholders.”
