Aon plc (NYSE:AON) Stake Lowered by Quadrature Capital Ltd

Quadrature Capital Ltd decreased its position in shares of Aon plc (NYSE:AON) by 73.6% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 12,157 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 33,933 shares during the period. Quadrature Capital Ltd’s holdings in AON were worth $4,205,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Farallon Capital Management LLC grew its stake in AON by 196.7% during the second quarter. Farallon Capital Management LLC now owns 1,875,200 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $550,521,000 after buying an additional 1,243,200 shares during the last quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in AON in the third quarter worth $336,375,000. Veritas Asset Management LLP raised 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 worth $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 increased its position in shares of AON by 334.9% during 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 worth $363,475,000 after acquiring an additional 808,990 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its position in AON by 37.8% in the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 2,000,969 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $587,445,000 after purchasing an additional 548,563 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.14% of the company’s stock.

AON Price Performance

AON opened at $379.73 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $82.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.04, a PEG ratio of 2.42 and a beta of 0.91. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $369.65 and a 200 day moving average of $333.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.66, a quick ratio of 2.05 and a current ratio of 2.05. Aon plc has a fifty-two week low of $268.06 and a fifty-two week high of $395.33.

AON Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 1st were issued a $0.675 dividend. This represents a $2.70 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.71%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 1st. AON’s dividend payout ratio is 22.78%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of AON from $394.00 to $440.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their target price on shares of AON from $311.00 to $353.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, August 26th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on shares of AON from $385.00 to $415.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 29th. Evercore ISI boosted their price target on shares of AON from $338.00 to $384.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on shares of AON from $344.00 to $365.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $362.06.

Insider Activity at AON

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

AON Company Profile

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.