Cantillon Capital Management LLC Acquires 9,277 Shares of Aon plc $AON

Cantillon Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Aon plc (NYSE:AON) by 0.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,243,018 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 9,277 shares during the quarter. AON comprises approximately 2.4% of Cantillon Capital Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 16th biggest position. Cantillon Capital Management LLC’s holdings in AON were worth $438,636,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. NewEdge Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in AON by 28.4% in the second quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 14,704 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $5,246,000 after acquiring an additional 3,253 shares during the period. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina grew its position in AON by 9.1% during the second quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 98,084 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $34,992,000 after buying an additional 8,216 shares during the period. Alliancebernstein L.P. grew its position in shares of AON by 35.2% during the 2nd quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 292,210 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $104,249,000 after acquiring an additional 76,061 shares during the period. Diversify Advisory Services LLC raised its holdings in AON by 27.1% in the 2nd quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC now owns 2,734 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $995,000 after purchasing an additional 583 shares during the period. Finally, Quantinno Capital Management LP lifted its position in AON by 46.1% during the second quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 40,044 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $14,286,000 after purchasing an additional 12,631 shares in the last quarter. 86.14% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

AON Stock Up 0.1%

Shares of NYSE:AON opened at $328.85 on Monday. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $321.49 and a 200 day moving average price of $333.05. 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 12 month low of $304.59 and a 12 month high of $381.00. The company has a market cap of $70.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.05, a PEG ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 0.71.

AON (NYSE:AON) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Saturday, May 2nd. The financial services provider reported $6.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.37 by $0.11. The business had revenue of $5.03 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.97 billion. AON had a return on equity of 43.50% and a net margin of 22.54%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $5.67 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Aon plc will post 19.1 earnings per share for the current year.

AON Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 15th. Investors of record on Friday, May 1st were given a $0.82 dividend. This is a boost from AON’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 1st. AON’s dividend payout ratio is 16.36%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. Barclays decreased their price objective on AON from $381.00 to $372.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 8th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of AON from $443.00 to $402.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on AON from $380.00 to $370.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 21st. Citigroup boosted their price objective on AON from $412.00 to $420.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 27th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their target price on AON from $416.00 to $401.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 7th. Thirteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $396.81.

AON Profile

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.