Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC Trims Stock Position in Aon plc $AON

Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lowered its stake in shares of Aon plc (NYSE:AON) by 25.2% in the first quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 9,763 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 3,283 shares during the quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC’s holdings in AON were worth $3,137,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Dodge & Cox increased its position in AON by 126.6% during 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 during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in AON in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,155,981,000. Viking Global Investors LP acquired a new position in AON during the third quarter valued at approximately $504,424,000. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. grew its stake in AON by 40,219.8% during the third quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 846,715 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $301,922,000 after buying an additional 844,615 shares during the period. Finally, Southpoint Capital Advisors LP acquired a new stake in shares of AON in the fourth quarter worth $229,372,000. 86.14% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

AON Stock Up 1.5%

NYSE:AON opened at $361.26 on Friday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $336.57 and its 200 day moving average price is $331.38. The firm has a market capitalization of $77.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.83, a PEG ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 0.71. The company has a current ratio of 1.95, a quick ratio of 1.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.36. Aon plc has a 1-year low of $304.59 and a 1-year high of $381.00.

AON (NYSE:AON) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Saturday, May 2nd. The financial services provider reported $6.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 analyst estimates of $4.97 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $5.67 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Aon plc will post 19.09 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AON Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 14th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 3rd will be paid a $0.82 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 3rd. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.9%. AON’s dividend payout ratio is 18.00%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have commented on AON. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of AON in a research report on Friday, July 17th. UBS Group boosted their price target on AON from $360.00 to $383.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 8th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price objective on AON from $404.00 to $400.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 8th. Cantor Fitzgerald raised their price target on AON from $416.00 to $445.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of AON from $409.00 to $406.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, AON has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $404.56.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other AON news, General Counsel Darren Zeidel sold 600 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $360.00, for a total value of $216,000.00. Following the transaction, the general counsel owned 15,354 shares in the company, valued at $5,527,440. The trade was a 3.76% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 1.00% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.