Aon plc $AON Stock Holdings Increased by Varma Mutual Pension Insurance Co

Varma Mutual Pension Insurance Co grew its position in shares of Aon plc (NYSE:AON) by 8.8% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 41,000 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 3,300 shares during the quarter. Varma Mutual Pension Insurance Co’s holdings in AON were worth $14,620,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in AON. Savvy Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of AON by 26.4% during the 3rd quarter. Savvy Advisors Inc. now owns 853 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $304,000 after acquiring an additional 178 shares in the last quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. increased its stake in AON by 3.6% during the third quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. now owns 48,997 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $17,471,000 after purchasing an additional 1,699 shares during the last quarter. Caprock Group LLC bought a new position in shares of AON in the 3rd quarter worth about $1,752,000. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. boosted its holdings in shares of AON by 10.0% in the 3rd quarter. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. now owns 2,812 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,003,000 after buying an additional 255 shares during the period. Finally, MQS Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of AON during the 3rd quarter valued at about $861,000. 86.14% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

AON Trading Up 1.5%

Shares of NYSE:AON opened at $314.52 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $344.67 and a 200-day moving average of $352.14. The company has a current ratio of 2.03, a quick ratio of 1.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55. The firm has a market cap of $67.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.48, a P/E/G ratio of 1.59 and a beta of 0.83. Aon plc has a twelve month low of $304.59 and a twelve month high of $412.97.

AON (NYSE:AON) last announced its earnings results on Friday, January 30th. The financial services provider reported $4.85 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.75 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $4.30 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.38 billion. AON had a return on equity of 45.23% and a net margin of 21.51%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 3.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $4.42 earnings per share. As a group, analysts anticipate that Aon plc will post 17.21 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AON Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 13th. Investors of record on Monday, February 2nd will be paid a dividend of $0.745 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 2nd. This represents a $2.98 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. AON’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 17.51%.

Trending Headlines about AON

Here are the key news stories impacting AON this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Director insider buy: Aon director Lester B. Knight purchased 4,000 shares at about $319.24 (~$1.28M), raising his stake to ~143,000 shares — a signal of management confidence that often supports the stock. Insider Purchase Filing
• Positive Sentiment: Senior appointment in Risk Capital: Aon named Joe Peiser CEO of Risk Capital (Commercial Risk & Reinsurance Solutions), consolidating leadership in a capital?intensive, higher?margin area that could improve reinsurance/capacity delivery and fee revenue. Aon Appoints Joe Peiser
• Positive Sentiment: New war?risk facility: Aon and KNIAZHA VIG launched a $25M war?risk insurance facility with the U.S. DFC — adds differentiated placement capability and incremental fee/business?development opportunities in a geopolitically sensitive segment. War?Risk Facility
• Neutral Sentiment: Market/strategy commentary: Aon commentary on ILS/capital markets and data?center expansion highlights addressable growth opportunities (keeps strategy visible but not immediately earnings?moving). Data Center / ILS Commentary
• Neutral Sentiment: Local hires and regional moves: Director appointment to Aon’s Leeds team and other personnel items bolster regional execution but are operationally minor for the stock near term. Leeds Appointment
• Negative Sentiment: Mixed analyst estimate revisions: Zacks and other analysts issued a series of small trims and tweaks to quarterly and multi?year EPS forecasts (some bumps, some cuts), suggesting limited near?term upside to consensus and tempering enthusiasm. Analyst / Zacks Coverage

Insider Transactions at AON

In other news, Director Lester B. Knight bought 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 10th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $319.24 per share, with a total value of $1,276,960.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director directly owned 143,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $45,651,320. The trade was a 2.88% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have commented on AON. TD Cowen decreased their target price on AON from $419.00 to $416.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, November 3rd. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of AON in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Cantor Fitzgerald upped their price target on shares of AON from $393.00 to $412.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of AON from $379.00 to $381.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. Finally, UBS Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $385.00 price target on shares of AON in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, AON currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $409.75.

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.