AON (NYSE:AON) Raised to “Outperform” at Bank of America

AON (NYSE:AON) was upgraded by equities researchers at Bank of America from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report released on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a $397.00 price objective on the financial services provider’s stock, down from their previous price objective of $398.00. Bank of America‘s price objective indicates a potential upside of 18.47% from the company’s current price.

A number of other research analysts also recently commented on the company. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “buy” rating and set a $408.00 price objective on shares of AON in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Morgan Stanley set a $400.00 price target on shares of AON in a report on Tuesday, December 16th. Mizuho set a $398.00 price objective on shares of AON in a report on Tuesday, February 3rd. UBS Group reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $385.00 target price on shares of AON in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of AON from $448.00 to $443.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Sunday, February 1st. Fourteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $408.94.

AON Trading Up 1.5%

NYSE AON opened at $335.11 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55, a quick ratio of 2.03 and a current ratio of 2.03. AON has a one year low of $304.59 and a one year high of $412.97. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $339.27 and a 200-day simple moving average of $349.21. The firm has a market capitalization of $71.80 billion, a PE ratio of 19.69, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.77 and a beta of 0.83.

AON (NYSE:AON) last issued its earnings results on Friday, January 30th. The financial services provider reported $4.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.75 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $4.30 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.38 billion. AON had a net margin of 21.51% and a return on equity of 45.23%. AON’s revenue was up 3.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $4.42 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that AON will post 17.21 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, General Counsel Darren Zeidel sold 5,040 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $325.79, for a total transaction of $1,641,981.60. Following the sale, the general counsel owned 20,254 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,598,550.66. The trade was a 19.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Lester B. Knight purchased 4,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 10th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $319.24 per share, with a total value of $1,276,960.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director owned 143,000 shares in the company, valued at $45,651,320. This represents a 2.88% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On AON

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Silver Lake Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in shares of AON during the 3rd quarter worth about $1,292,000. Callan Family Office LLC grew its stake in AON by 220.7% during the third quarter. Callan Family Office LLC now owns 11,675 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $4,163,000 after buying an additional 8,034 shares during the last quarter. Caprock Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of AON during the third quarter worth approximately $1,752,000. Veritas Asset Management LLP boosted its holdings in shares of AON by 19.3% in the 3rd quarter. Veritas Asset Management LLP now owns 2,053,673 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $732,299,000 after acquiring an additional 332,685 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Factory Mutual Insurance Co. grew its position in AON by 10.9% during the 3rd quarter. Factory Mutual Insurance Co. now owns 51,000 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $18,186,000 after acquiring an additional 5,000 shares during the last quarter. 86.14% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.