Louisiana State Employees Retirement System Makes New Investment in Aon plc $AON

Louisiana State Employees Retirement System purchased a new stake in Aon plc (NYSE:AON) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 10,900 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $3,518,000.

Several other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of AON. Murphy Middleton Hinkle & Parker Inc. acquired a new position in shares of AON in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $4,305,000. SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its holdings in shares of AON by 1,640.4% during the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 143,163 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $50,519,000 after purchasing an additional 134,937 shares during the last quarter. Bowie Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of AON by 31.0% in the third quarter. Bowie Capital Management LLC now owns 356,887 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $127,259,000 after purchasing an additional 84,446 shares during the period. Aviva PLC increased its stake in AON by 2.0% in the fourth quarter. Aviva PLC now owns 333,454 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $117,669,000 after purchasing an additional 6,622 shares during the last quarter. Finally, TABR Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in AON during the fourth quarter worth about $1,278,000. 86.14% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

AON Trading Up 3.9%

NYSE:AON opened at $328.40 on Friday. Aon plc has a 12-month low of $304.59 and a 12-month high of $381.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.36, a current ratio of 1.95 and a quick ratio of 1.95. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $322.53 and a 200 day simple moving average of $330.87. The firm has a market capitalization of $70.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.02, a P/E/G ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 0.71.

AON (NYSE:AON) last released its quarterly earnings results on Saturday, May 2nd. The financial services provider reported $6.48 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.37 by $0.11. The business had revenue of $5.03 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.97 billion. AON had a net margin of 22.54% and a return on equity of 43.50%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $5.67 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that Aon plc will post 19.09 EPS for the current year.

AON Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 1st were issued a dividend of $0.82 per share. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.0%. This is a boost from AON’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.74. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 1st. AON’s dividend payout ratio is presently 18.00%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Piper Sandler cut their price objective on shares of AON from $360.00 to $355.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, June 15th. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of AON from $380.00 to $370.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 21st. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of AON from $412.00 to $420.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on AON from $406.00 to $396.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 9th. Finally, Barclays cut their target price on AON from $381.00 to $372.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 8th. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $394.94.

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.