Barings LLC Boosts Stake in Aon plc $AON

Barings LLC increased its position in Aon plc (NYSE:AON) by 1,241.0% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 59,633 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 55,186 shares during the quarter. Barings LLC’s holdings in AON were worth $21,264,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Westside Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of AON by 100.0% during the 3rd quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 70 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Heartwood Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in AON during the third quarter worth about $29,000. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp purchased a new stake in AON in the second quarter worth about $31,000. Salomon & Ludwin LLC bought a new position in shares of AON during the third quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, Twin Peaks Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of AON during the second quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Institutional investors own 86.14% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, General Counsel Darren Zeidel sold 5,040 shares of the company’s 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 sale, the general counsel owned 20,254 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,598,550.66. This represents a 19.93% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Lester B. Knight acquired 4,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 10th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $319.24 per share, for a total transaction of $1,276,960.00. Following the acquisition, the director owned 143,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $45,651,320. The trade was a 2.88% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

AON Price Performance

AON opened at $325.14 on Friday. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $341.99 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $350.70. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $69.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.10, a P/E/G ratio of 1.66 and a beta of 0.83. Aon plc has a 52-week low of $304.59 and a 52-week high of $412.97.

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

AON Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 13th. Investors of record on Monday, February 2nd were issued a $0.745 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend 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%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently weighed in on AON. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on AON from $433.00 to $406.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. Roth Mkm reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $390.00 target price on shares of AON in a research note on Tuesday, November 4th. Citigroup raised their price target on AON from $402.00 to $412.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of AON in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of AON from $448.00 to $443.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Sunday, February 1st. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, AON currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $409.75.

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.