Aon plc (NYSE:AON) Short Interest Down 26.0% in August

Key Points

• Aon plc experienced a significant decrease in short interest, dropping by 26.0% from July to August, with short interest now at 2,220,000 shares, representing 1.1% of total shares.
• Institutional investors and hedge funds control approximately 86.14% of Aon's stock, with notable recent acquisitions, including Financial Gravity Asset Management and Saudi Central Bank.
• Aon reported earnings of $3.49 EPS for the last quarter, exceeding analyst expectations by $0.09, and also has a current dividend yield of 0.8% based on a quarterly payout of $0.745 per share.

Aon plc (NYSE:AON - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a large decrease in short interest during the month of August. As of August 15th, there was short interest totaling 2,220,000 shares, a decrease of 26.0% from the July 31st total of 3,000,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 1,350,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 1.6 days. Approximately 1.1% of the company's shares are sold short. Approximately 1.1% of the company's shares are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 1,350,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 1.6 days.

AON Stock Down 0.0%

AON stock traded down $0.13 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $372.12. 844,376 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,022,671. AON has a twelve month low of $323.73 and a twelve month high of $412.97. The company has a fifty day moving average of $363.89 and a 200-day moving average of $368.34. The company has a market cap of $80.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.17, a P/E/G ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 0.87. The company has a quick ratio of 1.52, a current ratio of 1.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.93.

AON (NYSE:AON - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 25th. The financial services provider reported $3.49 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.40 by $0.09. AON had a net margin of 15.54% and a return on equity of 50.91%. The business had revenue of $4.16 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.16 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.93 EPS. The company's revenue was up 10.5% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that AON will post 17.21 EPS for the current year.

AON Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 1st were issued a $0.745 dividend. This represents a $2.98 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 1st. AON's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 24.96%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On AON

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of AON. Polen Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of AON by 318.1% in the 1st quarter. Polen Capital Management LLC now owns 3,007,719 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,200,350,000 after purchasing an additional 2,288,397 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of AON in the 2nd quarter valued at $754,671,000. Nuveen LLC purchased a new position in shares of AON in the 1st quarter valued at $505,108,000. Wellington Management Group LLP purchased a new position in shares of AON in the 1st quarter valued at $490,634,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in shares of AON by 56,460.0% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 761,863 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $304,052,000 after buying an additional 760,516 shares during the last quarter. 86.14% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $438.00 price objective (up from $436.00) on shares of AON in a report on Thursday, July 10th. Barclays restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $420.00 price objective (up from $401.00) on shares of AON in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on shares of AON from $411.00 to $421.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, July 28th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of AON from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $400.00 to $426.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. Finally, Citigroup initiated coverage on shares of AON in a report on Wednesday, August 13th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $402.00 target price on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $415.50.

AON Company Profile

Aon Plc engages in the provision of risk, health, and wealth solutions. It focuses on risk capital including claim management, reinsurance, risk analysis, management, retention, and transfer; and human capital involving analytics, health and benefits, investments, pensions and retirement, talent and rewards, and workplace wellbeing.