Versant Capital Management Inc Grows Position in Aon plc (NYSE:AON)

Versant Capital Management Inc increased its position in shares of Aon plc (NYSE:AON) by 47.1% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 275 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 88 shares during the period. Versant Capital Management Inc’s holdings in AON were worth $99,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AON. Farallon Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of AON by 196.7% during the 2nd quarter. Farallon Capital Management LLC now owns 1,875,200 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $550,521,000 after acquiring an additional 1,243,200 shares during the last quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of AON during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $336,375,000. Veritas Asset Management LLP grew its stake 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 worth $1,041,623,000 after purchasing an additional 883,761 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its holdings in shares of AON by 334.9% in the 3rd 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 acquiring an additional 808,990 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Stone Point Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of AON in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $151,808,000. 86.14% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

AON Stock Down 0.3 %

NYSE AON opened at $353.98 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $76.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.87, a PEG ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 0.93. Aon plc has a 12 month low of $268.06 and a 12 month high of $395.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.66, a current ratio of 2.05 and a quick ratio of 2.05. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $372.03 and its 200 day simple moving average is $344.37.

AON Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 1st were given a dividend of $0.675 per share. This represents a $2.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.76%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 1st. AON’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 22.78%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on AON shares. Evercore ISI raised their target price on AON from $338.00 to $384.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on shares of AON from $325.00 to $380.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. TD Cowen lifted their price target on AON from $413.00 to $432.00 in a report on Thursday, October 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on AON from $379.00 to $394.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on AON from $385.00 to $415.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, AON has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $363.00.

Insider Activity

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

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.