Boston Common Asset Management LLC Buys 4,532 Shares of Aon plc $AON

Boston Common Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Aon plc (NYSE:AON) by 13.0% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 39,365 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 4,532 shares during the quarter. Boston Common Asset Management LLC’s holdings in AON were worth $14,037,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in AON. Norges Bank bought a new position in AON during the 2nd quarter valued at about $754,671,000. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of AON by 2.6% in the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 20,289,743 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $7,238,569,000 after buying an additional 511,292 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its stake in shares of AON by 15.6% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 3,507,656 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,251,391,000 after acquiring an additional 473,594 shares during the last quarter. Altrinsic Global Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in AON by 193.2% during the 2nd quarter. Altrinsic Global Advisors LLC now owns 692,633 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $247,104,000 after acquiring an additional 456,399 shares during the period. Finally, Vontobel Holding Ltd. grew its position in AON by 92.9% in the 3rd quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. now owns 889,332 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $317,118,000 after acquiring an additional 428,361 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.14% of the company’s stock.

AON Stock Down 2.0%

AON opened at $332.59 on Thursday. The company has a fifty day moving average of $349.19 and a two-hundred day moving average of $354.58. The stock has a market capitalization of $71.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.65, a PEG ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 0.84. Aon plc has a fifty-two week low of $323.73 and a fifty-two week high of $412.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.86, a quick ratio of 1.35 and a current ratio of 1.35.

AON (NYSE:AON) last posted its earnings results on Friday, October 31st. The financial services provider reported $3.05 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.91 by $0.14. The firm had revenue of $4 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.97 billion. AON had a return on equity of 48.88% and a net margin of 15.96%.The company’s quarterly revenue was up 7.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.72 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Aon plc will post 17.21 earnings per share for the current year.

AON Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 13th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 2nd will be given a dividend of $0.745 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 2nd. This represents a $2.98 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.9%. AON’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 23.88%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AON has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. UBS Group lowered their target price on shares of AON from $400.00 to $390.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, November 10th. Morgan Stanley set a $400.00 price objective on shares of AON in a research report on Tuesday, December 16th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of AON in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of AON from $449.00 to $448.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 13th. Finally, TD Cowen cut their price target on shares of AON from $419.00 to $416.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, November 3rd. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $408.47.

AON 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.