Forsta AP Fonden Boosts Stake in Aon plc (NYSE:AON)

Forsta AP Fonden lifted its stake in shares of Aon plc (NYSE:AON) by 11.8% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 38,900 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 4,100 shares during the quarter. Forsta AP Fonden’s holdings in AON were worth $13,459,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Y.D. More Investments Ltd purchased a new position in shares of AON during the second quarter worth approximately $31,000. Eastern Bank bought a new position in shares of AON during the third quarter valued at approximately $43,000. Nemes Rush Group LLC bought a new position in shares of AON during the second quarter valued at approximately $45,000. LRI Investments LLC bought a new position in shares of AON during the first quarter valued at approximately $55,000. Finally, Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC boosted its stake in shares of AON by 52.7% during the second quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC now owns 168 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $49,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. 86.14% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

AON Trading Up 5.2 %

Shares of AON stock opened at $375.44 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.92, a current ratio of 2.42 and a quick ratio of 2.42. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $349.01 and a 200 day moving average price of $316.65. Aon plc has a 1 year low of $268.06 and a 1 year high of $389.21. The stock has a market cap of $81.56 billion, a PE ratio of 30.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 0.92.

AON (NYSE:AON) last issued its earnings results on Friday, October 25th. The financial services provider reported $2.72 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.45 by $0.27. AON had a net margin of 18.00% and a return on equity of 252.81%. The firm had revenue of $3.72 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.70 billion. Equities research analysts predict that Aon plc will post 15.21 earnings per share for the current year.

AON Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 1st will be issued a $0.675 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 1st. This represents a $2.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.72%. AON’s payout ratio is 21.58%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of AON from $300.00 to $315.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Bank of America increased their price objective on shares of AON from $345.00 to $375.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and set a $335.00 price objective on shares of AON in a research note on Monday, August 5th. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on shares of AON from $300.00 to $296.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 10th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded shares of AON from an “underperform” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their target price for the company from $313.00 to $380.00 in a research note on Tuesday, July 30th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, AON has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $349.69.

AON Company Profile

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.