AON (NYSE:AON) Earns “Hold” Rating from Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft

Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated their hold rating on shares of AON (NYSE:AON) in a report issued on Tuesday, Benzinga reports. They currently have a $311.00 price target on the financial services provider’s stock.

A number of other equities analysts have also weighed in on AON. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of AON from $325.00 to $327.00 and gave the stock an equal weight rating in a research note on Monday, April 15th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on shares of AON from $294.00 to $312.00 and gave the stock an underperform rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Citigroup assumed coverage on shares of AON in a research note on Wednesday, May 22nd. They issued a neutral rating and a $309.00 target price for the company. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of AON from $300.00 to $289.00 and set an underweight rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 29th. Finally, Bank of America lowered shares of AON from a neutral rating to an underperform rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $345.00 to $306.00 in a research note on Wednesday, May 22nd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of Hold and an average price target of $321.86.

AON Stock Up 0.4 %

Shares of AON stock opened at $276.86 on Tuesday. AON has a 12-month low of $268.06 and a 12-month high of $347.37. The firm has a market capitalization of $60.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.70, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 0.90. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $301.35 and a 200-day moving average of $308.02.

AON (NYSE:AON) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 26th. The financial services provider reported $5.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $5.86 by ($0.20). AON had a net margin of 19.04% and a negative return on equity of 1,083.00%. The firm had revenue of $4.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.14 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $5.17 EPS. AON’s quarterly revenue was up 5.1% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that AON will post 15.47 earnings per share for the current year.

AON Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 1st were issued a $0.675 dividend. This represents a $2.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.98%. This is a boost from AON’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.62. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, April 30th. AON’s dividend payout ratio is presently 21.16%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Lester B. Knight bought 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 3rd. The shares were bought at an average cost of $276.61 per share, with a total value of $2,766,100.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 139,000 shares in the company, valued at $38,448,790. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 1.15% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On AON

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Integrated Advisors Network LLC raised its holdings in shares of AON by 5.1% in the 3rd quarter. Integrated Advisors Network LLC now owns 665 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $215,000 after purchasing an additional 32 shares during the period. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. raised its holdings in AON by 4.9% in the 3rd quarter. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. now owns 777 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $252,000 after acquiring an additional 36 shares during the period. Atria Wealth Solutions Inc. raised its holdings in AON by 2.2% in the 3rd quarter. Atria Wealth Solutions Inc. now owns 1,727 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $560,000 after acquiring an additional 37 shares during the period. Signaturefd LLC raised its holdings in AON by 1.8% in the 4th quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 2,149 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $625,000 after acquiring an additional 38 shares during the period. Finally, JFS Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in AON by 3.1% in the 4th quarter. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,246 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $363,000 after acquiring an additional 38 shares during the period. 86.14% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About AON

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.