AON (NYSE:AON) Raised to Outperform at Mizuho

AON (NYSE:AON) was upgraded by research analysts at Mizuho from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report issued on Friday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. The brokerage currently has a $397.00 price objective on the financial services provider’s stock. Mizuho’s price target suggests a potential upside of 20.27% from the stock’s current price.

AON has been the subject of several other reports. Citigroup increased their price objective on AON from $402.00 to $412.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 3rd. UBS Group reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $385.00 price target on shares of AON in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Cantor Fitzgerald lifted their price objective on shares of AON from $393.00 to $412.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Bank of America upgraded shares of AON from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and lowered their target price for the company from $398.00 to $397.00 in a report on Friday. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $400.00 price target on shares of AON in a report on Tuesday, December 16th. 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, AON has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $408.94.

AON Stock Performance

Shares of AON stock opened at $330.09 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 2.03, a quick ratio of 2.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $339.57 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $349.55. AON has a 12 month low of $304.59 and a 12 month high of $412.97. The firm has a market capitalization of $70.73 billion, a PE ratio of 19.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 0.83.

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

Insider Transactions at AON

In other AON news, General Counsel Darren Zeidel sold 5,040 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 completion of the transaction, the general counsel directly owned 20,254 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,598,550.66. This represents 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 accessible through this link. Also, Director Lester B. Knight bought 4,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 10th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $319.24 per share, with a total value of $1,276,960.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 143,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $45,651,320. The trade was a 2.88% increase in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. 1.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On AON

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Dodge & Cox increased its stake in shares of AON by 126.6% in the fourth quarter. Dodge & Cox now owns 7,852,456 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,770,975,000 after purchasing an additional 4,387,773 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in AON during the 4th quarter valued at $1,155,981,000. Viking Global Investors LP purchased a new stake in shares of AON during the third quarter worth $504,424,000. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. grew its position in shares of AON by 40,219.8% in the third quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 846,715 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $301,922,000 after purchasing an additional 844,615 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Southpoint Capital Advisors LP bought a new stake in shares of AON during the 4th quarter valued at $229,372,000. 86.14% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.