AON (NYSE:AON) Reaches New 1-Year Low – Time to Sell?

Aon plc (NYSE:AON)’s share price hit a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $304.55 and last traded at $304.8240, with a volume of 1650657 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $315.79.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Wall Street Zen downgraded AON from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Sunday. Mizuho reduced their price objective on shares of AON from $437.00 to $398.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, September 1st. Cantor Fitzgerald decreased their price target on AON from $445.00 to $433.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, September 1st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of AON in a report on Tuesday, September 1st. Finally, Barclays raised their price target on AON from $372.00 to $382.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $399.12.

AON Stock Down 3.5%

The stock has a market cap of $64.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 0.66. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $353.17 and its 200-day moving average is $334.17. The company has a current ratio of 1.54, a quick ratio of 1.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.34.

AON (NYSE:AON) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The financial services provider reported $3.81 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.80 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $4.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.28 billion. AON had a return on equity of 42.13% and a net margin of 22.27%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 2.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $3.49 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Aon plc will post 18.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AON Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 14th. Investors of record on Monday, August 3rd were issued a dividend of $0.82 per share. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 3rd. AON’s payout ratio is presently 18.08%.

Insider Transactions at AON

In other news, General Counsel Darren Zeidel sold 1,900 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $377.76, for a total transaction of $717,744.00. Following the completion of the sale, the general counsel directly owned 11,504 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,345,751.04. This represents a 14.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Lester B. Knight acquired 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 2nd. The shares were purchased at an average price of $327.48 per share, for a total transaction of $6,549,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 163,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $53,379,240. This represents a 13.99% increase in their position. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 4,450 shares of company stock valued at $1,659,242 over the last three months. 1.00% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On AON

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Aviva PLC lifted its holdings in AON by 2.0% during the 4th quarter. Aviva PLC now owns 333,454 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $117,669,000 after buying an additional 6,622 shares in the last quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB increased its holdings in shares of AON by 9.1% in the fourth quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 67,034 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $23,655,000 after acquiring an additional 5,585 shares in the last quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. increased its stake in AON by 1,864.5% during the 4th quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 343,754 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $121,304,000 after purchasing an additional 326,256 shares in the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its position in shares of AON by 136.1% during the first quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 547,850 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $176,835,000 after acquiring an additional 315,817 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ally Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of AON in the 2nd quarter valued at about $995,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.14% of the company’s stock.

About AON

Aon plc is a global professional services firm that helps organizations manage risk, support workforce strategies and make informed decisions. Its principal activities include commercial risk brokerage, insurance and reinsurance consulting, retirement and investment advisory services, health and benefits consulting, and data- and analytics-based business solutions.

Aon serves businesses, governments, institutional investors and individuals across a broad range of industries and geographies.