Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership Buys 340,866 Shares of Aon plc $AON

Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership grew its stake in shares of Aon plc (NYSE:AON) by 74.7% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 797,418 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 340,866 shares during the quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership owned approximately 0.37% of AON worth $257,391,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of AON. Aviva PLC lifted its stake in shares of AON by 2.0% in the fourth quarter. Aviva PLC now owns 333,454 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $117,669,000 after acquiring an additional 6,622 shares during the period. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. boosted its position in AON by 21.0% during the fourth quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 37,552 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $13,251,000 after acquiring an additional 6,509 shares during the last quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB lifted its stake in shares of AON by 9.1% in the 4th quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 67,034 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $23,655,000 after purchasing an additional 5,585 shares during the period. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. increased its holdings in AON by 1,864.5% in the fourth quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 343,754 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $121,304,000 after purchasing an additional 326,256 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Highland Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of AON in the 4th quarter worth $1,359,000. Institutional investors own 86.14% of the company’s stock.

AON Price Performance

Shares of NYSE AON opened at $361.26 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.36, a quick ratio of 1.95 and a current ratio of 1.95. Aon plc has a fifty-two week low of $304.59 and a fifty-two week high of $381.00. The stock has a market cap of $77.16 billion, a PE ratio of 19.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 0.71. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $336.57 and a 200-day moving average of $331.38.

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

AON Announces Dividend

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on AON shares. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of AON from $360.00 to $383.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 8th. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of AON from $372.00 to $382.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. Mizuho increased their price objective on shares of AON from $389.00 to $426.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. Cantor Fitzgerald lifted their target price on shares of AON from $416.00 to $445.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their target price on AON from $404.00 to $400.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 8th. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $404.56.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other AON news, General Counsel Darren Zeidel sold 600 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $360.00, for a total value of $216,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the general counsel directly 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 document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 1.00% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

AON Company 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.