Aon plc (NYSE:AON) Stake Lessened by Nilsine Partners LLC

Nilsine Partners LLC cut its stake in Aon plc (NYSE:AON) by 58.1% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,126 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 1,563 shares during the period. Nilsine Partners LLC’s holdings in AON were worth $376,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AON. Norges Bank bought a new stake in AON during the fourth quarter worth approximately $423,030,000. Fiera Capital Corp boosted its holdings in AON by 410.9% during the third quarter. Fiera Capital Corp now owns 654,446 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $212,184,000 after buying an additional 526,353 shares in the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company lifted its position in shares of AON by 44.1% in the 4th quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 950,153 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $276,514,000 after acquiring an additional 290,936 shares in the last quarter. FIL Ltd lifted its position in shares of AON by 36.1% in the 4th quarter. FIL Ltd now owns 1,030,177 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $299,802,000 after acquiring an additional 273,141 shares in the last quarter. Finally, OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp lifted its position in shares of AON by 61.5% in the 3rd quarter. OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp now owns 602,637 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $195,387,000 after acquiring an additional 229,500 shares in the last quarter. 86.14% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at AON

In related news, insider Lisa Stevens sold 13,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $315.26, for a total value of $4,098,380.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 10,073 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,175,613.98. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other news, CFO Christa Davies sold 40,164 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $313.29, for a total transaction of $12,582,979.56. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 159,570 shares in the company, valued at approximately $49,991,685.30. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Lisa Stevens sold 13,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $315.26, for a total transaction of $4,098,380.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 10,073 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,175,613.98. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 74,532 shares of company stock worth $23,335,805. 1.15% of the stock is owned by insiders.

AON Stock Performance

Shares of AON stock traded up $1.64 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $282.01. 4,377,120 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,104,376. The company has a market cap of $55.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 0.86. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $315.83 and its 200 day simple moving average is $313.36. Aon plc has a 52 week low of $268.06 and a 52 week high of $347.37.

AON (NYSE:AON) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 26th. The financial services provider reported $5.66 earnings per share 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 the consensus estimate of $4.14 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $5.17 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Aon plc will post 15.82 earnings per share for the current year.

AON Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 1st will be paid a $0.675 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 30th. This is a positive change from AON’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.62. This represents a $2.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.96%. AON’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 19.28%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently commented on AON. TD Cowen began coverage on shares of AON in a research report on Wednesday, January 10th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $390.00 price target for the company. UBS Group reduced their price target on shares of AON from $333.00 to $308.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 5th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of AON from $325.00 to $327.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, April 15th. 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 report on Tuesday, January 9th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on shares of AON from $294.00 to $312.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, AON has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $329.69.

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.