Willis Towers Watson (WTW) RSU sell-vs-hold
Calculator · free · no signup · WTWSell at vest or hold? Compare after-tax payout from selling Willis Towers Watson RSUs at vest vs. holding through the LTCG cliff at 12 months.
Beta · invite-only · AlphaLatitude Inc. · Free Tools
Your vest
Tax inputs
Hold strategy
Best after-tax payout — at year 1 yr
$47,709
Sell + invest wins by $4,981 over Hold 1 yr.
Estimates only. Not financial advice.
Heads-up: under-withholding. Your employer withholds federal tax at the IRS supplemental rate (22.0% on this vest, ≈ $17,600). Your marginal federal rate on this vest is 32.7%, owing $26,171. Expect to settle the $8,571 gap at tax time.
The hidden purchase
Tax was paid at vest either way. Holding is mathematically equivalent to taking $44,509 in after-tax cash and buying $44,509 of WTW today.
Most diversification frameworks would advise against a purchase that size in a single name; the right answer depends on your conviction in WTW. Holding past one year converts the gain to LTCG.
Sell + invest
Best payout| Vest value (shares × price) | $80,000 |
| Federal | |
| State | |
| Medicare | −$1,160 |
| Additional Medicare | −$720 |
| Market gain over 1 yr at 10.0% | $4,451 |
| Cap-gain tax on diversified gain — LTCG (federal + state + NIIT) | −$1,251 |
| Net at year 1 yr | $47,709 |
Sell every share at vest; invest the after-tax cash at the market return for 1 yr, then liquidate. Diversified — no single-stock concentration risk.
Hold 1 yr
| Vest value (shares × price) | $80,000 |
| Vest tax (federal + state + FICA) | |
| Net at year 1 yr | $42,728 |
Sold 444 shares to cover vest tax (net-settled); kept 556 shares 1 yr to qualify for long-term capital gains.
Social Security + Medicare are payroll taxes (collectively called FICA) — they apply because you're still employed at vest.
Both columns are stated in year-1 yr dollars. The sell side compounds at the market return; the hold side compounds at your single-stock expected return after a 20% volatility drag.
Estimates only. Assumes net-settled (sell-to-cover) vesting; double-trigger and pre-IPO RSUs are out of scope. Excludes multi-state moves, AMT interactions on other equity, and 83(b) elections. Not financial advice.
You evaluated one RSU vest. The beta plans every vest of every grant across years, with concentration and AMT in the loop.
Request beta access →Related calculators: RSU Lot Order Calculator · Stock Concentration Calculator
About Willis Towers Watson
Willis Towers Watson (WTW) is a public Fintech company, incorporated in Ireland and headquartered in London England, United Kingdom.
Last close: $327.9 per share (as of 2026-08-18).
Equity grants at Willis Towers Watson typically include restricted stock units (RSUs).
Willis Towers Watson plc is a British-American multinational advisory, broking and solutions company. Its operations span commercial insurance brokerage and risk advisory, employee benefits and rewards consulting, retirement and actuarial services, and investment advice for pension funds and institutional investors.
Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)
The 2016 merger of Willis Group and Towers Watson joined insurance broking with human-capital and actuarial consulting, and a later attempt to merge with Aon was abandoned under antitrust objection in 2021. Broking places commercial risk for fees; the consulting half advises on pensions, benefits design, and insurance-company actuarial work. Health and benefits consulting has grown with employer medical cost pressure. The company is incorporated in Ireland after the merger. Headquarters are in London.
Sources: sec.gov · en.wikipedia.org
OptionsAhoy is an independent tool and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by Willis Towers Watson.
Willis Towers Watson (WTW) RSUs vest as ordinary income at the price on vest day. The decision is whether to sell at vest and reinvest, or hold the shares through the 12-month LTCG cliff. This calculator runs both paths through the same after-tax math so you can compare like-for-like.
Example: 500 Willis Towers Watson (WTW) RSUs vesting at $327.9 per share is $163,950 of ordinary income on vest day. After roughly 32% combined federal + state + FICA (~$52,464), the post-tax share value is ~$111,486. Holding 12 months for long-term capital-gains treatment then only matters for the price change between vest and sale; the ordinary income at vest is already locked in. The calculator runs both paths through the same after-tax math.
All Willis Towers Watson tools → · Use the generic RSU Sell-vs-Hold Calculator for any company. Diversifying multiple RSU lots? See the lot-by-lot sell order →
Willis Towers Watson equity questions
- Should I sell or hold my Willis Towers Watson RSUs at vest?
- Willis Towers Watson restricted stock units (RSUs) are taxed as ordinary income on their value at vest whether or not you sell. The only open decision is what to do with the shares afterward: sell at vest and reinvest, or hold past twelve months for long-term capital-gains treatment on any further gain. The calculator above runs both paths through the same after-tax math so you can compare them directly.
- Does Willis Towers Watson grant ISOs, NSOs, or RSUs?
- Equity compensation at Willis Towers Watson typically takes the form of restricted stock units (RSUs). Restricted stock units are taxed as ordinary income when they vest.
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