Aon plc (NYSE:AON) Holdings Cut by Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc.

Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. trimmed its position in shares of Aon plc (NYSE:AON - Free Report) by 2.8% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,212,599 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 35,137 shares during the quarter. AON makes up approximately 2.2% of Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 10th largest position. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. owned about 0.56% of AON worth $483,936,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Wedbush Securities Inc. grew its holdings in AON by 28.3% in the 1st quarter. Wedbush Securities Inc. now owns 1,392 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $556,000 after buying an additional 307 shares in the last quarter. IMA Advisory Services Inc. purchased a new stake in AON in the 1st quarter valued at $89,000. City National Bank of Florida MSD grew its holdings in AON by 40.6% in the 1st quarter. City National Bank of Florida MSD now owns 969 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $387,000 after buying an additional 280 shares in the last quarter. Oak Thistle LLC purchased a new stake in AON in the 1st quarter valued at $3,100,000. Finally, Accredited Investors Inc. grew its holdings in AON by 0.9% in the 1st quarter. Accredited Investors Inc. now owns 4,222 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,685,000 after buying an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. 86.14% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

AON Stock Performance

AON stock traded up $16.10 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $372.71. 2,251,364 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,320,097. Aon plc has a twelve month low of $304.12 and a twelve month high of $412.97. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $358.28 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $370.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.26, a quick ratio of 1.73 and a current ratio of 1.73. The firm has a market cap of $80.48 billion, a PE ratio of 31.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 0.84.

AON (NYSE:AON - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 25th. The financial services provider reported $3.49 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.40 by $0.09. AON had a return on equity of 52.71% and a net margin of 15.58%. The company had revenue of $4.16 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.16 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.93 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 10.5% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that Aon plc will post 17.21 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AON Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 1st will be paid a dividend of $0.745 per share. This represents a $2.98 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.80%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 1st. AON's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 24.96%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded AON from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $408.00 price target for the company in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. Piper Sandler upgraded AON from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $384.00 to $378.00 in a report on Monday, April 28th. Evercore ISI lowered their price target on AON from $420.00 to $398.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 28th. Barclays lowered their price target on AON from $415.00 to $401.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, July 7th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price target on AON from $414.00 to $409.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, AON currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $403.00.

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.