Aon plc (NYSE:AON) Shares Bought by Gotham Asset Management LLC

Gotham Asset Management LLC lifted its position in Aon plc (NYSE:AON) by 38.5% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 17,779 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 4,939 shares during the period. Gotham Asset Management LLC’s holdings in AON were worth $6,386,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Endeavor Private Wealth Inc. bought a new stake in shares of AON in the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. boosted its position in AON by 2,025.0% during the 4th quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 85 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 81 shares during the period. Millstone Evans Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of AON during the fourth quarter valued at $32,000. Centricity Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of AON during the fourth quarter valued at about $39,000. Finally, Kestra Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in AON during the 4th quarter valued at about $39,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.14% of the company’s stock.

AON Stock Up 0.6%

Shares of AON stock opened at $355.60 on Wednesday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $375.55 and its 200-day moving average is $375.38. The firm has a market capitalization of $76.79 billion, a PE ratio of 28.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.12 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a quick ratio of 1.40, a current ratio of 1.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.58. Aon plc has a 12-month low of $275.07 and a 12-month high of $412.97.

AON (NYSE:AON) last announced its earnings results on Friday, April 25th. The financial services provider reported $5.67 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.04 by ($0.37). The company had revenue of $4.73 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.83 billion. AON had a return on equity of 70.84% and a net margin of 16.91%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 16.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $5.66 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Aon plc will post 17.21 earnings per share for the current year.

AON Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 1st will be issued a dividend of $0.745 per share. This is an increase from AON’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 1st. This represents a $2.98 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.84%. AON’s payout ratio is currently 25.38%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AON has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on shares of AON from $396.00 to $416.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their target price on shares of AON from $414.00 to $409.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on AON from $390.00 to $400.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on AON from $394.00 to $409.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on AON from $410.00 to $445.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $391.75.

AON Profile

Aon Plc engages in the provision of risk, health, and wealth solutions. It focuses on risk capital including claim management, reinsurance, risk analysis, management, retention, and transfer; and human capital involving analytics, health and benefits, investments, pensions and retirement, talent and rewards, and workplace wellbeing.