Brighton Jones LLC Lowers Stock Holdings in Aon plc (NYSE:AON)

Brighton Jones LLC cut its stake in Aon plc (NYSE:AON) by 13.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 7,279 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 1,162 shares during the period. Brighton Jones LLC’s holdings in AON were worth $2,614,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of AON. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in AON in the third quarter valued at $336,375,000. Veritas Asset Management LLP boosted its holdings in AON by 41.6% in the third quarter. Veritas Asset Management LLP now owns 3,010,557 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,041,623,000 after purchasing an additional 883,761 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its holdings in AON by 334.9% in the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,050,537 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $363,475,000 after purchasing an additional 808,990 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in AON in the third quarter valued at $906,040,000. Finally, Accredited Investors Inc. boosted its holdings in AON by 5,694.5% in the third quarter. Accredited Investors Inc. now owns 242,442 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $83,883,000 after purchasing an additional 238,258 shares during the period. 86.14% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on AON shares. Evercore ISI upgraded AON from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $407.00 to $420.00 in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Wells Fargo & Company raised AON from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $377.00 to $410.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on AON from $325.00 to $380.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Bank of America lifted their price target on AON from $345.00 to $375.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on AON from $344.00 to $365.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and five 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 $370.87.

AON Stock Performance

Shares of AON stock opened at $368.91 on Friday. Aon plc has a 52-week low of $268.06 and a 52-week high of $395.33. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $367.58 and its 200 day moving average price is $350.62. The stock has a market capitalization of $79.79 billion, a PE ratio of 31.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.00 and a beta of 0.93. The company has a quick ratio of 2.05, a current ratio of 2.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.66.

AON Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 14th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 3rd will be issued a $0.675 dividend. This represents a $2.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.73%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 3rd. AON’s dividend payout ratio is presently 22.78%.

Insider Buying and Selling at AON

In other AON news, COO Mindy F. Simon sold 650 shares of AON stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $394.34, for a total value of $256,321.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 1,816 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $716,121.44. The trade was a 26.36 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Lisa Stevens sold 1,275 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $387.68, for a total value of $494,292.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 8,077 shares in the company, valued at $3,131,291.36. This trade represents a 13.63 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

AON Company 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.