Aon plc (NYSE:AON) Given Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Aon plc (NYSE:AON) has been given a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the seventeen analysts that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and thirteen have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $396.8125.

AON has been the subject of several analyst reports. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on shares of AON from $380.00 to $370.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 21st. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of AON in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. Barclays decreased their target price on shares of AON from $381.00 to $372.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of AON from $406.00 to $396.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Finally, Mizuho reduced their price objective on shares of AON from $394.00 to $389.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, May 5th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On AON

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Sound View Wealth Advisors Group LLC boosted its position in AON by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. Sound View Wealth Advisors Group LLC now owns 1,935 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $683,000 after purchasing an additional 29 shares during the period. Kathmere Capital Management LLC boosted its position in AON by 2.1% during the fourth quarter. Kathmere Capital Management LLC now owns 1,582 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $558,000 after purchasing an additional 32 shares during the period. City National Bank of Florida MSD boosted its position in AON by 3.8% during the fourth quarter. City National Bank of Florida MSD now owns 867 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $306,000 after purchasing an additional 32 shares during the period. Westpac Banking Corp boosted its position in AON by 5.6% during the third quarter. Westpac Banking Corp now owns 620 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $221,000 after purchasing an additional 33 shares during the period. Finally, Capital Investment Advisors LLC boosted its position in AON by 1.8% during the fourth quarter. Capital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 1,882 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $664,000 after purchasing an additional 33 shares during the period. 86.14% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

AON Price Performance

NYSE:AON opened at $315.86 on Thursday. AON has a 1-year low of $304.59 and a 1-year high of $381.00. The company has a current ratio of 1.95, a quick ratio of 1.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.36. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $321.44 and a 200 day simple moving average of $333.40. The stock has a market capitalization of $67.46 billion, a PE ratio of 17.34, a P/E/G ratio of 1.67 and a beta of 0.71.

AON (NYSE:AON) last released its earnings results on Saturday, May 2nd. The financial services provider reported $6.48 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.37 by $0.11. AON had a net margin of 22.54% and a return on equity of 43.50%. The business had revenue of $5.03 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.97 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $5.67 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that AON will post 19.1 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AON Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 1st were given a dividend of $0.82 per share. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.0%. This is a positive change from AON’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 1st. AON’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 16.36%.

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.