Aon plc (NYSE:AON) Shares Sold by New York State Common Retirement Fund

New York State Common Retirement Fund cut its holdings in Aon plc (NYSE:AON) by 7.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 336,307 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 27,904 shares during the period. New York State Common Retirement Fund owned about 0.17% of AON worth $97,872,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Cubic Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of AON in the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,050,000. Cerity Partners LLC grew its position in AON by 177.4% in the fourth quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 18,461 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $5,372,000 after acquiring an additional 11,806 shares in the last quarter. Oak Thistle LLC acquired a new position in AON during the 4th quarter valued at $3,203,000. Pathstone Family Office LLC raised its stake in AON by 45.1% during the 3rd quarter. Pathstone Family Office LLC now owns 15,663 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $5,081,000 after purchasing an additional 4,872 shares during the last quarter. Finally, James Hambro & Partners raised its stake in AON by 9.9% during the 4th quarter. James Hambro & Partners now owns 223,865 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $65,137,000 after purchasing an additional 20,239 shares during the last quarter. 86.14% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at AON

In other news, 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 sale, the insider now directly owns 10,073 shares in the company, valued at $3,175,613.98. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, CFO Christa Davies sold 40,164 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $313.29, for a total value of $12,582,979.56. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 159,570 shares in the company, valued at $49,991,685.30. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Lisa Stevens sold 13,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, the insider now owns 10,073 shares in the company, valued at $3,175,613.98. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 74,532 shares of company stock worth $23,335,805 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 1.15% of the company’s stock.

AON Stock Up 0.7 %

Shares of AON traded up $2.05 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $313.07. 153,264 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 982,618. The company has a market cap of $62.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.04, a PEG ratio of 1.88 and a beta of 0.86. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $317.79 and its 200 day simple moving average is $314.64. Aon plc has a twelve month low of $284.85 and a twelve month high of $347.37.

AON (NYSE:AON) last posted its quarterly 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). AON had a net margin of 19.17% and a negative return on equity of 1,150.40%. The company had revenue of $3.38 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.36 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $3.89 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts predict 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. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 1st will be given a $0.675 dividend. This represents a $2.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.86%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 30th. This is a boost from AON’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.62. AON’s payout ratio is currently 19.71%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently commented on AON shares. UBS Group cut their target price on shares of AON from $333.00 to $308.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 5th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price target on shares of AON from $342.00 to $325.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price target on shares of AON from $350.00 to $310.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 9th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on shares of AON from $294.00 to $312.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Finally, Piper Sandler upped their target price on shares of AON from $306.00 to $326.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, February 12th. Two equities 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, AON presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $334.69.

About AON

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.