Aon plc $AON Stock Holdings Cut by Bank of New York Mellon Corp

Key Points

• Bank of New York Mellon cut its Aon stake by 4.5% in the first quarter, selling 157,969 shares and ending with 3.32 million shares valued at about $1.07 billion.
• Aon reported better-than-expected Q1 earnings, posting $6.48 EPS on $5.03 billion in revenue, both ahead of analyst estimates, while revenue rose 6.4% year over year.
• The company also announced a quarterly dividend of $0.82 per share, payable August 14, and analysts currently rate the stock a consensus Moderate Buy with an average target price of $404.56.

Bank of New York Mellon Corp lessened its position in Aon plc (NYSE:AON - Free Report) by 4.5% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 3,321,092 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 157,969 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp owned approximately 1.56% of AON worth $1,071,982,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Wealth Watch Advisors INC acquired a new stake in shares of AON during the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. acquired a new stake in shares of AON during the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Kemnay Advisory Services Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of AON during the fourth quarter worth $29,000. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of AON during the fourth quarter valued at $30,000. Finally, Strive Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of AON in the 3rd quarter valued at $35,000. Institutional investors own 86.14% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, General Counsel Darren Zeidel sold 600 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $360.00, for a total value of $216,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the general counsel owned 15,354 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,527,440. The trade was a 3.76% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 1.00% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

AON Stock Performance

Shares of AON opened at $355.23 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $75.87 billion, a PE ratio of 19.50, a PEG ratio of 1.89 and a beta of 0.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.36, a quick ratio of 1.95 and a current ratio of 1.95. The company's 50 day moving average price is $330.02 and its 200 day moving average price is $330.86. Aon plc has a 52 week low of $304.59 and a 52 week high of $381.00.

AON (NYSE:AON - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Saturday, May 2nd. The financial services provider reported $6.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $6.37 by $0.11. The company had revenue of $5.03 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.97 billion. AON had a net margin of 22.54% and a return on equity of 43.50%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $5.67 EPS. Research analysts expect that Aon plc will post 19.09 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AON Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 14th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 3rd will be paid a dividend of $0.82 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 3rd. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.9%. AON's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 18.00%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have issued reports on AON. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price objective on AON from $404.00 to $400.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 8th. Cantor Fitzgerald lifted their target price on shares of AON from $416.00 to $445.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. Piper Sandler lowered shares of AON from an "overweight" rating to a "neutral" rating and boosted their price target for the company from $355.00 to $377.00 in a report on Wednesday. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c)" rating on shares of AON in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of AON from $412.00 to $420.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 27th. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $404.56.

AON Profile

Aon plc is a global professional services firm that provides a broad suite of risk, retirement and health solutions to corporations, institutions and individuals. The company operates primarily as an insurance broker and risk adviser, helping clients identify, quantify and transfer risk across property, casualty, cyber and other areas. Aon also offers reinsurance brokerage and capital market solutions that connect insurers, reinsurers and corporate buyers.

In addition to traditional brokerage activities, Aon delivers consulting and outsourcing services in areas such as human capital, benefits, and retirement plan design and administration.

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