Jefferies Financial Group Inc. Acquires 2,382 Shares of Aon plc $AON

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Aon plc (NYSE:AON) by 2.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 123,030 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,382 shares during the quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. owned approximately 0.06% of AON worth $43,415,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in AON by 36.8% in the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,584 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $559,000 after purchasing an additional 426 shares in the last quarter. Americana Partners LLC raised its holdings in AON by 17.7% in the fourth quarter. Americana Partners LLC now owns 3,932 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,388,000 after purchasing an additional 590 shares in the last quarter. Markel Group Inc. raised its holdings in AON by 3.3% in the fourth quarter. Markel Group Inc. now owns 134,050 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $47,304,000 after purchasing an additional 4,250 shares in the last quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in AON by 2.1% in the fourth quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,596,315 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $563,308,000 after purchasing an additional 32,494 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Global Retirement Partners LLC raised its holdings in AON by 31.2% in the fourth quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 2,545 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $898,000 after purchasing an additional 605 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.14% of the company’s stock.

AON Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:AON opened at $324.73 on Friday. Aon plc has a 1-year low of $304.59 and a 1-year high of $381.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.36, a current ratio of 1.95 and a quick ratio of 1.95. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $321.84 and a 200-day moving average price of $334.94. The company has a market capitalization of $69.36 billion, a PE ratio of 17.82, a PEG ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 0.72.

AON (NYSE:AON) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Saturday, May 2nd. The financial services provider reported $6.48 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.37 by $0.11. AON had a return on equity of 43.50% and a net margin of 22.54%.The firm had revenue of $5.03 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.97 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $5.67 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts expect that Aon plc will post 19.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AON Increases Dividend

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on AON shares. Cantor Fitzgerald increased their price objective on AON from $393.00 to $412.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 2nd. TD Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of AON in a report on Monday, March 16th. Barclays decreased their price objective on AON from $381.00 to $372.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 8th. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $408.00 price objective on shares of AON in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price objective on AON from $416.00 to $401.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 7th. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $396.00.

AON Company 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.