Daiwa Securities Group Inc. Increases Stock Position in Aon plc (NYSE:AON)

Daiwa Securities Group Inc. grew its stake in Aon plc (NYSE:AON) by 6.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 18,521 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,091 shares during the period. Daiwa Securities Group Inc.’s holdings in AON were worth $5,390,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Arcus Capital Partners LLC raised its position in AON by 2.7% in the third quarter. Arcus Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,171 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $380,000 after purchasing an additional 31 shares during the period. Ronald Blue Trust Inc. raised its holdings in shares of AON by 7.4% in the 3rd quarter. Ronald Blue Trust Inc. now owns 450 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $155,000 after buying an additional 31 shares during the period. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. boosted its holdings in AON by 10.4% during the 3rd quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 341 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $111,000 after acquiring an additional 32 shares during the period. Integrated Advisors Network LLC grew its position in AON by 5.1% in the 3rd quarter. Integrated Advisors Network LLC now owns 665 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $215,000 after acquiring an additional 32 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Equitable Holdings Inc. increased its stake in AON by 2.3% during the first quarter. Equitable Holdings Inc. now owns 1,447 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $456,000 after purchasing an additional 32 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.14% of the company’s stock.

AON Price Performance

NYSE AON opened at $310.19 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $317.77 and its 200 day moving average price is $314.84. Aon plc has a 12 month low of $284.85 and a 12 month high of $347.37. The company has a market capitalization of $61.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.85, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 0.86.

AON (NYSE:AON) last posted its earnings results on Friday, February 2nd. The financial services provider reported $3.89 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.07 by ($0.18). The firm had revenue of $3.38 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.36 billion. AON had a negative return on equity of 1,150.40% and a net margin of 19.17%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $3.89 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Aon plc will post 15.82 earnings per share for the current year.

AON Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 1st will be issued a $0.675 dividend. This represents a $2.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.87%. This is a boost from AON’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.62. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 30th. AON’s payout ratio is presently 19.71%.

Insider Activity at AON

In other news, insider Michael Neller sold 750 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $312.00, for a total transaction of $234,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 3,869 shares in the company, valued at $1,207,128. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In related news, insider Michael Neller sold 750 shares of AON stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $312.00, for a total value of $234,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 3,869 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,207,128. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Lester B. Knight acquired 50,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 7th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $301.97 per share, with a total value of $15,098,500.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 134,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $40,463,980. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 74,532 shares of company stock worth $23,335,805 in the last 90 days. 1.15% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently commented on AON. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of AON from $325.00 to $327.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, April 15th. TD Cowen began coverage on shares of AON in a research note on Wednesday, January 10th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $390.00 price target for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on AON from $318.00 to $353.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, April 8th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on AON from $294.00 to $312.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Finally, UBS Group reduced their price target on AON from $333.00 to $308.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 5th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, AON has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $334.69.

AON Company Profile

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.