Highland Capital Management LLC Buys Shares of 3,850 Aon plc $AON

Key Points

• Highland Capital Management bought a new stake of 3,850 shares in Aon in Q4, valued at about $1.36 million, joining other hedge funds that increased positions as institutional ownership stands at 86.14%.
• Aon beat quarterly estimates with $6.48 EPS (vs. $6.37 est.) and $5.03 billion in revenue, reporting strong profitability (net margin 22.54%, ROE 43.5%) and analysts forecast about $19.02 EPS for the fiscal year.
• Aon raised its quarterly dividend to $0.82 (annualized $3.28, ~1.0% yield) and maintains a consensus analyst rating of "Moderate Buy" with an average price target near $397.88.

Highland Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Aon plc (NYSE:AON - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund bought 3,850 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,359,000.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Murphy Middleton Hinkle & Parker Inc. bought a new stake in shares of AON during the 4th quarter valued at $4,305,000. Callan Family Office LLC grew its position in shares of AON by 220.7% during the 3rd quarter. Callan Family Office LLC now owns 11,675 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $4,163,000 after acquiring an additional 8,034 shares during the period. Caprock Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of AON during the 3rd quarter valued at $1,752,000. Veritas Asset Management LLP grew its position in shares of AON by 19.3% during the 3rd quarter. Veritas Asset Management LLP now owns 2,053,673 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $732,299,000 after acquiring an additional 332,685 shares during the period. Finally, Savant Capital LLC boosted its holdings in AON by 64.9% in the 3rd quarter. Savant Capital LLC now owns 19,092 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $6,808,000 after buying an additional 7,512 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 86.14% of the company's stock.

AON Stock Down 0.1%

AON opened at $314.52 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $325.19 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $336.84. Aon plc has a 52 week low of $304.59 and a 52 week high of $381.00. The company has a market capitalization of $67.17 billion, a PE ratio of 17.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.67 and a beta of 0.72. The company has a quick ratio of 2.03, a current ratio of 1.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.36.

AON (NYSE:AON - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, May 1st. The financial services provider reported $6.48 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.37 by $0.11. AON had a net margin of 22.54% and a return on equity of 43.50%. The business had revenue of $5.03 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.97 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $5.67 EPS. The business's revenue was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that Aon plc will post 19.02 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AON Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 15th. Investors of record on Friday, May 1st will be issued a $0.82 dividend. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 1st. This is a positive change from AON's previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. AON's payout ratio is 16.36%.

Insider Transactions at AON

In other AON news, Director Lester B. Knight purchased 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 10th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $319.24 per share, with a total value of $1,276,960.00. Following the acquisition, the director owned 143,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $45,651,320. The trade was a 2.88% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, General Counsel Darren Zeidel sold 5,040 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $325.79, for a total transaction of $1,641,981.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the general counsel directly owned 20,254 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,598,550.66. The trade was a 19.93% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently weighed in on AON. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of AON from $406.00 to $396.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 9th. UBS Group reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and issued a $385.00 target price on shares of AON in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Mizuho dropped their target price on shares of AON from $394.00 to $389.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday. TD Cowen reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of AON in a report on Monday, March 16th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of AON from $443.00 to $402.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 9th. Fourteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, AON has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $397.88.

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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