Principal Financial Group Inc. Reduces Stock Position in Aon plc (NYSE:AON)

Principal Financial Group Inc. decreased its holdings in Aon plc (NYSE:AON) by 71.4% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 254,481 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 634,688 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned about 0.12% of AON worth $88,048,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Anchor Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in AON by 1,162.5% during the 3rd quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 101 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 93 shares in the last quarter. Y.D. More Investments Ltd bought a new stake in shares of AON during the second quarter valued at approximately $31,000. First Personal Financial Services bought a new position in AON in the third quarter worth approximately $37,000. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new position in AON during the 3rd quarter worth $42,000. Finally, Eastern Bank bought a new stake in AON during the 3rd quarter valued at $43,000. 86.14% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently commented on AON shares. Barclays raised their price target on AON from $394.00 to $440.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of AON from $345.00 to $375.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on shares of AON from $325.00 to $380.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on shares of AON from $385.00 to $415.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 29th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upgraded AON from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $315.00 to $377.00 in a report on Monday, October 28th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $362.06.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Lisa Stevens sold 1,275 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $387.68, for a total value of $494,292.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now 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 filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, COO Mindy F. Simon sold 650 shares of the firm’s 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 sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 1,816 shares in the company, valued at approximately $716,121.44. This trade represents a 26.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

AON Trading Up 1.3 %

NYSE:AON opened at $358.47 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 2.05, a quick ratio of 2.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.66. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $372.18 and a 200-day simple moving average of $340.01. Aon plc has a 12 month low of $268.06 and a 12 month high of $395.33. The company has a market capitalization of $77.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.25, a PEG ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 0.91.

AON Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.75%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 1st. AON’s dividend payout ratio is presently 22.78%.

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.