Dimensional Fund Advisors LP Acquires 47,335 Shares of Aon plc $AON

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake in Aon plc (NYSE:AON) by 5.3% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 943,833 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 47,335 shares during the quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP’s holdings in AON were worth $336,529,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Matrix Trust Co boosted its position in AON by 7.1% in the third quarter. Matrix Trust Co now owns 422 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $150,000 after buying an additional 28 shares in the last quarter. Busey Bank boosted its holdings in shares of AON by 0.3% during the 3rd quarter. Busey Bank now owns 9,565 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,411,000 after acquiring an additional 33 shares in the last quarter. Westpac Banking Corp grew its position in AON by 5.6% during the 3rd quarter. Westpac Banking Corp now owns 620 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $221,000 after acquiring an additional 33 shares during the last quarter. Mill Creek Capital Advisors LLC increased its holdings in AON by 5.9% in the 3rd quarter. Mill Creek Capital Advisors LLC now owns 615 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $219,000 after purchasing an additional 34 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Heritage Family Offices LLP raised its position in AON by 1.5% in the third quarter. Heritage Family Offices LLP now owns 2,308 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $823,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. 86.14% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Evercore reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $436.00 price objective on shares of AON in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of AON in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on shares of AON from $410.00 to $416.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on AON from $433.00 to $406.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 7th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group set a $395.00 target price on AON in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. Fourteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, AON has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $408.94.

AON Trading Down 0.6%

AON opened at $339.06 on Friday. Aon plc has a twelve month low of $304.59 and a twelve month high of $407.07. The company has a fifty day moving average of $337.93 and a 200-day moving average of $348.55. The stock has a market cap of $72.65 billion, a PE ratio of 19.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.80 and a beta of 0.82. The company has a quick ratio of 2.03, a current ratio of 2.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55.

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

AON Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared 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 of this dividend was Monday, February 2nd. This represents a $2.98 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. AON’s payout ratio is 17.51%.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

AON Company 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.