Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. Invests $25.06 Million in Aon plc (NYSE:AON)

Key Points

• Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. acquired a new stake in Aon plc, purchasing 62,785 shares valued at approximately $25 million in the first quarter.
• Aon recently announced an earnings per share (EPS) of $3.49, exceeding analyst estimates and marking a 10.5% increase in quarterly revenue year-over-year.
• The company established a quarterly dividend of $0.745 per share, with a payout ratio of 24.96% and an annualized yield of 0.8%.

Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. acquired a new stake in Aon plc (NYSE:AON - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 62,785 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $25,057,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in AON during the 1st quarter worth approximately $28,000. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in AON by 54.7% during the 1st quarter. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 82 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 29 shares during the last quarter. Tsfg LLC purchased a new position in AON during the 1st quarter worth approximately $37,000. Garde Capital Inc. purchased a new position in AON during the 1st quarter worth approximately $42,000. Finally, Meeder Asset Management Inc. raised its position in AON by 111.3% during the 1st quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 112 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $45,000 after buying an additional 59 shares during the last quarter. 86.14% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

AON Price Performance

AON stock traded up $2.65 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $363.05. The company had a trading volume of 103,045 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,321,837. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $358.14 and its 200 day simple moving average is $370.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.93, a quick ratio of 1.52 and a current ratio of 1.52. The firm has a market capitalization of $78.28 billion, a PE ratio of 30.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.10 and a beta of 0.83. Aon plc has a 1-year low of $323.31 and a 1-year high of $412.97.

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. The company had revenue of $4.16 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.16 billion. AON had a return on equity of 50.91% and a net margin of 15.54%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 10.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.93 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Aon plc will post 17.21 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AON Dividend Announcement

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of AON from $394.00 to $409.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price objective on shares of AON from $414.00 to $409.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised shares of AON from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $408.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, May 13th. Evercore ISI raised their price objective on shares of AON from $411.00 to $421.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, July 28th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of AON from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $400.00 to $426.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $409.21.

About AON

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.