Moore Capital Management LP Acquires 11,168 Shares of Aon plc $AON

Moore Capital Management LP grew its holdings in shares of Aon plc (NYSE:AON) by 5.6% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 212,192 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 11,168 shares during the period. AON comprises 1.0% of Moore Capital Management LP’s holdings, making the stock its 11th largest holding. Moore Capital Management LP’s holdings in AON were worth $75,663,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in AON. Westside Investment Management Inc. grew its position in AON by 100.0% during the third quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 70 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Watch Advisors INC acquired a new position in AON in the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. Heartwood Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of AON during the 3rd quarter valued at $29,000. Salomon & Ludwin LLC acquired a new stake in shares of AON during the 3rd quarter worth $31,000. Finally, Twin Peaks Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of AON in the second quarter worth $37,000. 86.14% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at AON

In other news, Director Lester B. Knight purchased 4,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 10th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $319.24 per share, for a total transaction of $1,276,960.00. Following the purchase, the director owned 143,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $45,651,320. The trade was a 2.88% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, General Counsel Darren Zeidel sold 5,040 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $325.79, for a total value of $1,641,981.60. Following the sale, the general counsel directly owned 20,254 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,598,550.66. This trade represents a 19.93% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

AON Stock Up 1.6%

AON stock opened at $326.65 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $334.01 and a 200-day moving average price of $345.98. Aon plc has a 12 month low of $304.59 and a 12 month high of $402.49. The company has a current ratio of 2.03, a quick ratio of 2.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55. The stock has a market capitalization of $69.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.82.

AON (NYSE:AON) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 30th. The financial services provider reported $4.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.75 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $4.30 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.38 billion. AON had a net margin of 21.51% and a return on equity of 45.23%. The firm’s revenue was up 3.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $4.42 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Aon plc will post 17.21 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AON Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 13th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 2nd were issued a dividend of $0.745 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 2nd. This represents a $2.98 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.9%. AON’s dividend payout ratio is 17.51%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently weighed in on AON. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of AON from $448.00 to $443.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Sunday, February 1st. Morgan Stanley set a $400.00 target price on shares of AON in a report on Tuesday, December 16th. UBS Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $385.00 price target on shares of AON in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Cantor Fitzgerald increased their price target on shares of AON from $393.00 to $412.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Finally, Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of AON from $402.00 to $412.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Fourteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, AON has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $408.94.

About AON

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.