Czech National Bank Raises Stake in Aon plc (NYSE:AON)

Czech National Bank boosted its stake in Aon plc (NYSE:AON) by 6.8% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 44,254 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,821 shares during the quarter. Czech National Bank’s holdings in AON were worth $15,311,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of AON. Y.D. More Investments Ltd purchased a new stake in AON in the second quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Rise Advisors LLC acquired a new position in AON during the first quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Nemes Rush Group LLC acquired a new position in AON during the second quarter valued at approximately $45,000. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC lifted its position in 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 buying an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. Finally, LRI Investments LLC acquired a new position in AON during the first quarter valued at approximately $55,000. 86.14% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

AON Price Performance

AON stock traded up $0.57 during trading on Friday, hitting $348.07. The company had a trading volume of 568,002 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,194,502. The firm has a market capitalization of $75.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.29, a P/E/G ratio of 2.25 and a beta of 0.92. The business has a 50 day moving average of $340.11 and a 200 day moving average of $313.46. Aon plc has a fifty-two week low of $268.06 and a fifty-two week high of $353.54. The company has a current ratio of 2.42, a quick ratio of 2.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.92.

AON (NYSE:AON) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 26th. The financial services provider reported $2.93 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.08 by ($0.15). AON had a net margin of 18.00% and a return on equity of 252.81%. The business had revenue of $3.76 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.74 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.76 earnings per share. AON’s revenue was up 18.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that Aon plc will post 15.22 earnings per share for the current year.

AON Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 1st were issued a $0.675 dividend. This represents a $2.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.78%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, August 1st. AON’s payout ratio is 21.16%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have weighed in on AON shares. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of AON from $300.00 to $296.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of AON from $353.00 to $379.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 11th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their target price on shares of AON from $311.00 to $353.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, August 26th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of AON from $287.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Monday, July 29th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded shares of AON from an “underperform” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $313.00 to $380.00 in a research note on Tuesday, July 30th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $337.27.

AON 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.