Analysts Set Aon plc (NYSE:AON) PT at $404.56

Aon plc (NYSE:AON) has been given a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” by the seventeen analysts that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and twelve have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month target price among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $404.5625.

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on AON. Barclays upped their target price on shares of AON from $372.00 to $382.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of AON in a report on Friday, July 17th. Piper Sandler cut AON from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $355.00 to $377.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on AON from $370.00 to $380.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, July 6th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on AON from $409.00 to $406.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 9th.

AON Price Performance

AON opened at $361.26 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $77.16 billion, a PE ratio of 19.83, a P/E/G ratio of 1.89 and a beta of 0.71. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $336.57 and a 200-day moving average price of $331.24. AON has a 1 year low of $304.59 and a 1 year 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.

AON (NYSE:AON) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Saturday, May 2nd. The financial services provider reported $6.48 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.37 by $0.11. The company had revenue of $5.03 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.97 billion. AON had a net margin of 22.54% and a return on equity of 43.50%. AON’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $5.67 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that AON will post 19.09 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AON Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 14th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 3rd will be given a $0.82 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 3rd. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.9%. AON’s payout ratio is 18.00%.

Insider Transactions at AON

In other news, General Counsel Darren Zeidel sold 600 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $360.00, for a total transaction of $216,000.00. Following the sale, the general counsel owned 15,354 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,527,440. This trade represents a 3.76% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Corporate insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Dodge & Cox raised its stake in AON by 126.6% during the 4th quarter. Dodge & Cox now owns 7,852,456 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,770,975,000 after buying an additional 4,387,773 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of AON in the 4th quarter worth $1,155,981,000. Viking Global Investors LP bought a new stake in shares of AON in the third quarter worth $504,424,000. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. increased its position in AON by 40,219.8% during the third quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 846,715 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $301,922,000 after acquiring an additional 844,615 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Southpoint Capital Advisors LP purchased a new stake in AON during the fourth quarter valued at $229,372,000. Institutional investors own 86.14% of the company’s stock.

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.