Aon plc $AON Stock Position Raised by Capital Investment Advisors LLC

Key Points

• Capital Investment Advisors increased its AON stake by 305.5% in the third quarter, ending with 9,204 shares worth approximately $2.55 million. Institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 86.14% of the company.
• Analyst sentiment remains generally positive, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $367.59, although several firms recently lowered their targets and Wolfe Research downgraded the stock to “strong sell.”
• AON reported quarterly earnings of $3.81 per share, slightly above estimates, while revenue rose 2.2% year over year to $4.25 billion. The company also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.82 per share, representing a 1.1% annualized yield.

Capital Investment Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Aon plc (NYSE:AON - Free Report) by 305.5% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 9,204 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 6,934 shares during the period. Capital Investment Advisors LLC's holdings in AON were worth $2,547,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. grew its position in AON by 11,179.6% during the third quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 4,026,135 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,114,313,000 after buying an additional 3,990,441 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE lifted 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 valued at $510,857,000 after purchasing an additional 222,092 shares in the last quarter. Amundi raised its position in shares of AON by 23.5% during the 1st quarter. Amundi now owns 1,502,890 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $485,103,000 after purchasing an additional 285,549 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in AON by 20.5% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,253,769 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $404,709,000 after buying an additional 213,051 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ninety One UK Ltd raised its position in shares of AON by 419.8% in the third quarter. Ninety One UK Ltd now owns 836,932 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $231,638,000 after buying an additional 675,919 shares during the last quarter. 86.14% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on AON shares. UBS Group restated a "neutral" rating on shares of AON in a research report on Monday, August 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on AON from $412.00 to $362.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 1st. Barclays reduced their price objective on shares of AON from $382.00 to $317.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 7th. Piper Sandler dropped their price target on shares of AON from $391.00 to $349.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, September 1st. Finally, Wolfe Research downgraded AON from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a report on Friday, September 11th. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $367.59.

Insider Activity at AON

In other news, Director Lester B. Knight acquired 20,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 2nd. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $327.48 per share, with a total value 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 position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, General Counsel Darren Zeidel sold 1,900 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $377.76, for a total value of $717,744.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the general counsel owned 11,504 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,345,751.04. This represents a 14.17% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 1.00% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

AON Stock Performance

Shares of AON stock opened at $303.47 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $64.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.73, a PEG ratio of 1.59 and a beta of 0.70. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $305.15 and its 200-day simple moving average is $325.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.34, a current ratio of 1.54 and a quick ratio of 1.54. Aon plc has a 12 month low of $266.33 and a 12 month high of $382.34.

AON (NYSE:AON - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The financial services provider reported $3.81 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.80 by $0.01. AON had a net margin of 22.27% and a return on equity of 42.13%. The business had revenue of $4.25 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.28 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.49 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 2.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Aon plc will post 18.73 earnings per share for the current year.

AON Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 13th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 2nd will be paid a dividend of $0.82 per share. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 2nd. AON's dividend payout ratio is 18.08%.

About AON

Aon plc is a global professional services firm that helps organizations manage risk, make informed decisions and improve workforce outcomes. Its services span commercial risk, health, retirement and investments, and data and analytics.

The company provides insurance brokerage and risk-management services, including coverage placement, claims support, risk transfer and consulting. Through its reinsurance business, Aon also serves insurers and other organizations seeking to manage catastrophe, capital and underwriting risks.

Aon's human capital offerings include employee benefits consulting, retirement advisory services, talent and compensation consulting, and health and workforce solutions.

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