AON (NYSE:AON) Stock Price Target Lowered at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods

Key Points

• Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered AON’s price target to $342 from $417 while maintaining an “outperform” rating, implying roughly 25.3% upside from the prior close.
• Analyst sentiment remains broadly positive, with 12 Buy, six Hold, and two Sell ratings; the consensus rating is “Moderate Buy” with an average price target of $367.59.
• AON opened at $272.94, near its 52-week low of $266.33. The company slightly exceeded quarterly EPS expectations, reporting $3.81 versus the $3.80 consensus, while revenue rose 2.2% year over year.

AON (NYSE:AON - Get Free Report) had its target price reduced by Keefe, Bruyette & Woods from $417.00 to $342.00 in a research note issued to investors on Monday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an "outperform" rating on the financial services provider's stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods' price objective would suggest a potential upside of 25.30% from the company's previous close.

AON has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Bank of America upped their price target on shares of AON from $298.00 to $327.00 and gave the company an "underperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. UBS Group reiterated a "neutral" rating on shares of AON in a research note on Monday, August 31st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a "hold" rating on shares of AON in a report on Tuesday, September 1st. Jefferies Financial Group cut their target price on AON from $387.00 to $383.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, September 30th. Finally, Mizuho cut their target price on AON from $366.00 to $324.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $367.59.

AON Stock Performance

AON opened at $272.94 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $57.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 0.70. The company has a quick ratio of 1.54, a current ratio of 1.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.34. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $318.62 and its 200-day moving average price is $327.55. AON has a 52-week low of $266.33 and a 52-week high of $382.34.

AON (NYSE:AON - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The financial services provider reported $3.81 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.80 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $4.25 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.28 billion. AON had a net margin of 22.27% and a return on equity of 42.13%. AON's revenue for the quarter was up 2.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $3.49 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that AON will post 18.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at AON

In other news, General Counsel Darren Zeidel sold 1,950 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, July 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $372.05, for a total value of $725,497.50. Following the sale, the general counsel directly owned 13,404 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,986,958.20. This represents a 12.70% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Lester B. Knight acquired 20,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 2nd. The stock was acquired at an average price of $327.48 per share, for a total transaction of $6,549,600.00. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 163,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $53,379,240. This trade represents a 13.99% increase in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. 1.00% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in AON. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership raised its stake in shares of AON by 74.7% during the 1st quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 797,418 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $257,391,000 after buying an additional 340,866 shares during the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company boosted its stake in shares of AON by 136.1% in the first quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 547,850 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $176,835,000 after buying an additional 315,817 shares during the last quarter. Amundi grew its holdings in AON by 23.5% during the first quarter. Amundi now owns 1,502,890 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $485,103,000 after acquiring an additional 285,549 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE grew its holdings in AON by 16.3% during the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 1,582,680 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $510,857,000 after acquiring an additional 222,092 shares during the period. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its position in AON by 20.5% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,253,769 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $404,709,000 after acquiring an additional 213,051 shares in the last quarter. 86.14% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About AON

Aon plc is a global professional services firm that helps organizations manage risk, make better decisions and improve performance. Its services are organized around risk capital and human capital, combining advisory expertise, data, analytics and insurance-related solutions.

The company provides commercial risk brokerage and consulting, reinsurance brokerage, retirement and investment advisory services, health benefits consulting, talent and compensation consulting, and related technology and data products.

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