AON (NYSE:AON) Sees Large Volume Increase

Shares of Aon plc (NYSE:AON) saw unusually-high trading volume on Tuesday . Approximately 2,416,439 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 124% from the previous session’s volume of 1,079,426 shares.The stock last traded at $284.92 and had previously closed at $280.37.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AON has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. TD Cowen initiated coverage on shares of AON in a research note on Wednesday, January 10th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $390.00 price objective for the company. Piper Sandler reduced their price objective on shares of AON from $326.00 to $312.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on shares of AON from $294.00 to $312.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their target price on shares of AON from $350.00 to $310.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 9th. Finally, UBS Group cut their target price on shares of AON from $333.00 to $308.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 5th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $329.69.

AON Trading Up 1.3 %

The stock has a market cap of $56.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 0.86. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $316.50 and its 200 day simple moving average is $313.67.

AON (NYSE:AON) last released its earnings results on Friday, April 26th. The financial services provider reported $5.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.86 by ($0.20). AON had a net margin of 19.04% and a negative return on equity of 1,083.00%. The business had revenue of $4.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.14 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $5.17 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that Aon plc will post 15.82 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AON Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 1st will be given a $0.675 dividend. This represents a $2.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.95%. This is an increase from AON’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.62. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 30th. AON’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 19.28%.

Insider Activity at AON

In related news, CFO Christa Davies sold 20,618 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $311.40, for a total value of $6,420,445.20. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 159,570 shares in the company, valued at approximately $49,690,098. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other AON news, CFO Christa Davies sold 20,618 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $311.40, for a total transaction of $6,420,445.20. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 159,570 shares in the company, valued at approximately $49,690,098. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Lester B. Knight bought 50,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 7th. The shares were bought at an average price of $301.97 per share, for a total transaction of $15,098,500.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 134,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $40,463,980. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have sold 74,532 shares of company stock worth $23,335,805 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 1.15% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On AON

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in AON. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of AON during the 4th quarter worth approximately $423,030,000. Fiera Capital Corp grew its stake in shares of AON by 410.9% in the third quarter. Fiera Capital Corp now owns 654,446 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $212,184,000 after buying an additional 526,353 shares in the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its stake in shares of AON by 44.1% in the fourth quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 950,153 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $276,514,000 after buying an additional 290,936 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its stake in shares of AON by 401.6% in the first quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 344,891 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $115,097,000 after buying an additional 276,131 shares in the last quarter. Finally, FIL Ltd grew its stake in shares of AON by 36.1% in the fourth quarter. FIL Ltd now owns 1,030,177 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $299,802,000 after buying an additional 273,141 shares in the last quarter. 86.14% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About AON

Aon plc, a professional services firm, provides a range of risk and human capital solutions worldwide. It offers commercial risk solutions, including retail brokerage, specialty solutions, global risk consulting and captives management, and affinity programs; and health solutions, such as health and benefits brokerages, and health care exchanges.