Aon plc $AON Stock: Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd Boosts Position

Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd raised its position in shares of Aon plc (NYSE:AON) by 955.5% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 305,099 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 276,194 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd’s holdings in AON were worth $84,442,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB raised its stake in shares of AON by 5.3% in the second quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 650 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $216,000 after buying an additional 33 shares during the period. Aspen Grove Capital LLC lifted its position in shares of AON by 4.8% during the 1st quarter. Aspen Grove Capital LLC now owns 737 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $238,000 after buying an additional 34 shares during the last quarter. Novem Group grew its stake in shares of AON by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. Novem Group now owns 3,460 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $958,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares during the period. KCM Investment Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of AON by 6.2% during the 1st quarter. KCM Investment Advisors LLC now owns 651 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $210,000 after acquiring an additional 38 shares during the period. Finally, RDA Financial Network increased its holdings in AON by 2.9% in the 2nd quarter. RDA Financial Network now owns 1,451 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $481,000 after acquiring an additional 41 shares during the last quarter. 86.14% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AON has been the topic of a number of research reports. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on AON from $383.00 to $323.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, October 12th. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of AON from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 17th. Jefferies Financial Group cut their target price on shares of AON from $387.00 to $383.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, September 30th. Cantor Fitzgerald reduced their target price on shares of AON from $433.00 to $400.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 7th. Finally, UBS Group reissued a “neutral” rating on shares of AON in a research report on Monday, August 31st. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $367.59.

Insider Activity at AON

In other news, Director Lester Knight bought 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 2nd. The shares were acquired at an average price of $327.48 per share, with a total value of $6,549,600.00. Following the acquisition, the director owned 163,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $53,379,240. The trade was a 13.99% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, General Counsel Darren Zeidel sold 1,900 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $377.76, for a total transaction of $717,744.00. Following the completion of the sale, the general counsel owned 11,504 shares in the company, valued at $4,345,751.04. This represents a 14.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 1.00% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

AON Stock Down 0.9%

Shares of NYSE AON opened at $290.06 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.54, a current ratio of 1.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.34. The company has a market cap of $61.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.08, a P/E/G ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 0.70. Aon plc has a 52 week low of $266.33 and a 52 week high of $382.34. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $309.55 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $325.88.

AON (NYSE:AON) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The financial services provider reported $3.81 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.80 by $0.01. AON had a return on equity of 42.13% and a net margin of 22.27%. The firm had revenue of $4.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.28 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $3.49 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 2.2% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that Aon plc will post 18.73 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AON Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 13th. Investors of record on Monday, November 2nd will be paid a dividend of $0.82 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 2nd. This represents a $3.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.1%. AON’s payout ratio is currently 18.08%.

AON Company Profile

Aon plc is a global professional services firm that helps organizations manage risk, make informed decisions and improve workforce outcomes. Its services span commercial risk, health, retirement and investments, and data and analytics.

The company provides insurance brokerage and risk-management services, including coverage placement, claims support, risk transfer and consulting. Through its reinsurance business, Aon also serves insurers and other organizations seeking to manage catastrophe, capital and underwriting risks.

Aon’s human capital offerings include employee benefits consulting, retirement advisory services, talent and compensation consulting, and health and workforce solutions.