AON (NYSE:AON) General Counsel Darren Zeidel Sells 5,040 Shares

Aon plc (NYSE:AON) General Counsel Darren Zeidel sold 5,040 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 17th. The stock was 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 in the company, valued at $6,598,550.66. This trade represents a 19.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link.

AON Stock Performance

AON stock traded up $2.04 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $326.34. The company had a trading volume of 141,207 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,489,841. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55, a quick ratio of 1.35 and a current ratio of 2.03. The firm has a market cap of $69.92 billion, a PE ratio of 19.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 0.83. Aon plc has a 12 month low of $304.59 and a 12 month high of $412.97. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $342.56 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $350.95.

AON (NYSE:AON) last released its earnings results on Friday, January 30th. The financial services provider reported $4.85 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.75 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $4.30 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.38 billion. AON had a net margin of 21.51% and a return on equity of 45.23%. The company’s revenue was up 3.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $4.42 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Aon plc will post 17.21 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AON Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 13th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 2nd were paid a $0.745 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 2nd. This represents a $2.98 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.9%. AON’s payout ratio is presently 17.51%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On AON

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in AON. Mutual Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of AON by 17.6% during the 2nd quarter. Mutual Advisors LLC now owns 754 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $281,000 after buying an additional 113 shares in the last quarter. Phoenix Financial Ltd. bought a new position in AON during the second quarter valued at approximately $1,152,000. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. raised its stake in shares of AON by 2.1% during the second quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. now owns 47,966 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $17,112,000 after acquiring an additional 965 shares in the last quarter. BTS Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of AON in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $473,000. Finally, Brookstone Capital Management boosted its stake in shares of AON by 449.4% in the 2nd quarter. Brookstone Capital Management now owns 5,604 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,999,000 after purchasing an additional 4,584 shares in the last quarter. 86.14% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have commented on AON. Roth Mkm reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $390.00 price objective on shares of AON in a report on Tuesday, November 4th. Citigroup raised their price objective on shares of AON from $402.00 to $412.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 3rd. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $395.00 target price on shares of AON in a report on Wednesday, January 7th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on AON from $448.00 to $443.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Sunday, February 1st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $408.00 price target on shares of AON in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, AON presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $409.75.

About AON

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.