National Pension Service Has $166.74 Million Stock Holdings in Aon plc $AON

National Pension Service increased its holdings in shares of Aon plc (NYSE:AON) by 12.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 472,500 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 52,077 shares during the period. National Pension Service owned about 0.22% of AON worth $166,736,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in AON. Dodge & Cox acquired a new stake in AON during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $1,235,437,000. Viking Global Investors LP acquired a new stake in AON during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $504,424,000. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. boosted its position in AON by 40,219.8% during the 3rd quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 846,715 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $301,922,000 after buying an additional 844,615 shares during the period. Independent Franchise Partners LLP lifted its position in shares of AON by 41.6% in the 3rd quarter. Independent Franchise Partners LLP now owns 2,096,486 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $747,565,000 after purchasing an additional 615,570 shares during the period. Finally, Strive Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of AON in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $142,986,000. 86.14% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

AON Stock Down 0.8%

AON stock opened at $315.63 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.95, a current ratio of 1.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.36. Aon plc has a 12-month low of $304.59 and a 12-month high of $381.00. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $321.71 and its 200 day moving average is $334.14. The company has a market capitalization of $67.41 billion, a PE ratio of 17.32, a PEG ratio of 1.67 and a beta of 0.72.

AON (NYSE:AON) last released its earnings results on Saturday, May 2nd. The financial services provider reported $6.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.37 by $0.11. AON had a net margin of 22.54% and a return on equity of 43.50%. The company had revenue of $5.03 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.97 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $5.67 EPS. AON’s quarterly revenue was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Aon plc will post 19.1 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AON Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 15th. Investors of record on Friday, May 1st were given a dividend of $0.82 per share. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 1st. This is a boost from AON’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. AON’s dividend payout ratio is presently 16.36%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “buy” rating and issued a $408.00 price target on shares of AON in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Piper Sandler boosted their price target on shares of AON from $355.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Barclays dropped their price target on shares of AON from $381.00 to $372.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on shares of AON from $406.00 to $396.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Finally, Bank of America upgraded shares of AON from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $398.00 to $397.00 in a research report on Friday, February 27th. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $396.81.

AON Profile

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.