Dimensional Fund Advisors LP Acquires 213,051 Shares of Aon plc $AON

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in shares of Aon plc (NYSE:AON) by 20.5% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,253,769 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 213,051 shares during the quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP owned 0.59% of AON worth $404,709,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of AON. Balefire LLC grew its stake in AON by 11.2% in the 1st quarter. Balefire LLC now owns 765 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $247,000 after purchasing an additional 77 shares during the period. Parallel Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of AON by 6.0% during the 1st quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 2,081 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $672,000 after purchasing an additional 117 shares during the last quarter. True North Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of AON by 21.2% during the 1st quarter. True North Advisors LLC now owns 1,315 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $424,000 after purchasing an additional 230 shares during the period. SEB Asset Management AB purchased a new position in shares of AON in the 1st quarter worth about $21,594,000. Finally, Swiss National Bank grew its position in AON by 6.8% during the first quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 599,260 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $193,429,000 after buying an additional 37,920 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.14% of the company’s stock.

AON Stock Performance

Shares of AON stock opened at $358.82 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $76.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.69, a PEG ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 0.71. The company has a current ratio of 1.95, a quick ratio of 1.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.36. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $334.06 and its 200 day moving average is $331.10. Aon plc has a 12 month low of $304.59 and a 12 month high of $381.00.

AON (NYSE:AON) last released its quarterly earnings data on Saturday, May 2nd. The financial services provider reported $6.48 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.37 by $0.11. AON had a net margin of 22.54% and a return on equity of 43.50%. The business had revenue of $5.03 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.97 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $5.67 EPS. AON’s revenue was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Aon plc will post 19.09 earnings per share for the current year.

AON Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 14th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 3rd will be issued a $0.82 dividend. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 3rd. AON’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 18.00%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have commented on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of AON from $396.00 to $412.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, July 13th. Mizuho lifted their price target on shares of AON from $389.00 to $426.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on AON from $370.00 to $380.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, July 6th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price objective on AON from $404.00 to $400.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 8th. Finally, Barclays raised their target price on AON from $372.00 to $382.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $404.56.

Insider Buying and Selling at AON

In related news, General Counsel Darren Zeidel sold 600 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $360.00, for a total transaction of $216,000.00. Following the sale, the general counsel directly owned 15,354 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,527,440. The trade was a 3.76% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 1.00% 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.