Pitcairn Co. Trims Position in Aon plc (NYSE:AON)

Pitcairn Co. lessened its position in shares of Aon plc (NYSE:AON) by 53.2% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 1,818 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 2,064 shares during the quarter. Pitcairn Co.’s holdings in AON were worth $607,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund increased its position in AON by 216.1% in the first quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 275,000 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $91,773,000 after buying an additional 188,000 shares in the last quarter. Lake Street Advisors Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of AON by 85.8% in the first quarter. Lake Street Advisors Group LLC now owns 2,025 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $676,000 after acquiring an additional 935 shares during the period. Atlanta Consulting Group Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of AON in the first quarter worth about $259,000. Capitolis Liquid Global Markets LLC bought a new position in AON during the first quarter valued at approximately $8,343,000. Finally, Seven Eight Capital LP boosted its stake in AON by 13.5% during the first quarter. Seven Eight Capital LP now owns 6,516 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,175,000 after buying an additional 774 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.14% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Lester B. Knight acquired 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 3rd. The stock was bought at an average cost of $276.61 per share, for a total transaction of $2,766,100.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 139,000 shares in the company, valued at $38,448,790. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 1.15% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

AON Stock Up 0.3 %

Shares of AON stock opened at $298.95 on Friday. Aon plc has a twelve month low of $268.06 and a twelve month high of $344.68. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $291.99 and a 200 day moving average price of $302.41. The firm has a market cap of $65.00 billion, a PE ratio of 23.43, a P/E/G ratio of 1.98 and a beta of 0.91.

AON (NYSE:AON) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 26th. The financial services provider reported $2.93 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.09 by ($0.16). AON had a net margin of 19.04% and a negative return on equity of 1,083.00%. The business had revenue of $3.76 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.74 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.76 EPS. AON’s revenue for the quarter was up 18.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Aon plc will post 15.41 EPS for the current year.

AON Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 1st will be paid a dividend of $0.675 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 1st. This represents a $2.70 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.90%. AON’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 21.16%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AON has been the subject of several analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and issued a $315.00 price objective on shares of AON in a research note on Tuesday, June 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on AON from $353.00 to $379.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 11th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on AON from $294.00 to $312.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Citigroup started coverage on AON in a report on Wednesday, May 22nd. They set a “neutral” rating and a $309.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Bank of America downgraded AON from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $345.00 to $306.00 in a report on Wednesday, May 22nd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $321.36.

AON Profile

Aon plc, a professional services firm, provides a range of risk and human capital solutions worldwide. It offers commercial risk solutions, including retail brokerage, specialty solutions, global risk consulting and captives management, and affinity programs; and health solutions, such as health and benefits brokerages, and health care exchanges.