Fact based stock research
Aon (NYSE:AON)

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How to read the free ranks

For every stock, we judge its performance against its peers and rank it on a scale of 1 to 100. The higher the rank, the better the stock performs than its peers. And, we do this for six investment strategies:
Value - shows how good of a value the stock is. Green is "inexpensive"; red is "expensive".

Growth - shows a company's growth potential. Green is "high growth" expected; red is "tough times ahead".

Safety - relates to the amount of debt a company has. Green is low debt level; red is high debt level.

Combined Financial - this isn't an average of the first three ranks but rather a consolidated view across several financial indicators. Green = good; red = tread carefully.

(NEW) Sentiment - quantifies professional analyst ratings and holdings as well as market pulse. Green = positive sentiment; red = skepticism (Only available to Premium Subscribers).

(NEW) 360° View - the ultimate rating with all financial and non-financial indicators.

Aon stock research in summary

aon.com

ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Combined Rank of 17 (worse than 83% compared with investment alternatives), Aon (Insurance Brokers, United Kingdom) shares have lower financial characteristics compared with similar stocks. Shares of Aon are low in value (priced high) with a consolidated Value Rank of 1 (worse than 99% of alternatives), show below-average growth (Growth Rank of 35), and are riskily financed (Safety Rank of 4), which means above-average debt burdens. ...read more

RECOMMENDATION: A Combined Rank of 17, is a sell recommendation based on Aon's financial characteristics. As the company Aon's key financial metrics all exhibit below-average performance, such as low value (Obermatt Value Rank of 1), low growth (Obermatt Growth Rank of 35), and risky financing practices (Obermatt Safety Rank of 4), it is a somewhat questionable stock investment, where the risk of paying too much for the shares is significant, unless the company has an exceptionally bright future. Such poor financial performance sometimes indicates that the company's business is all concentrated in some distant future. This is sometimes the case for high-tech or biotechnology companies. If they own properties that only provide cash flows in the future, the stock may look excessively expensive and risky today. In such cases, the Obermatt Method has limited value as it is based on facts we can observe today. If the facts are all in the future, stock investing becomes guesswork, and this should only be a driver in a limited number of investments that should only amount to a small fraction of a safe portfolio. Obermatt Premium subscribers can further check the stock’s Sentiment Ranks, which also flow into the Obermatt 360° View for investors. ...read more

Latest Obermatt Ranks


360° View^new
Sentiment Rank^new
Value Rank	1
Growth Rank	35
Safety Rank	4
Combined Rank	17

Country	United Kingdom
Industry	Insurance Brokers
Index	Employee Focus EU, Diversity Europe, S&P 500
Size class	XX-Large

19-Dec-2024. Stock data may be delayed. Log in or sign up to get the most recent research.

Further information

Multiple opinions. One number.

Analysts rarely agree on a stock’s future. So, who do you believe? Obermatt translates those collective views into a single Sentiment Rank. That plus the financial ranks give you the ultimate 360° View. Sign up to access them.

Why popular stocks have low ratings

It’s easier said than done. When your stock drops, it’s easy to want to sell it and find a better performer. Think twice, or even three times, before trading. Those fees (especially the hidden ones) can eat up your gains.

Review the performance ranks of the individual metrics that form each investment strategy.

Research History: Aon

RESEARCH HISTORY	2021	2022	2023	2024
VALUE
VALUE	1	1	17	1
GROWTH
GROWTH	28	35	25	35
SAFETY
SAFETY	11	4	4	4
SENTIMENT
SENTIMENT	n/a	45	27	^new
360° VIEW
360° VIEW	n/a	9	3	^new

Most recent update of the stock research: 19-Dec-2024. Financial reporting date used for calculating ranks: 30-Sep-2024. Stock research history is based on the Obermatt Method. The higher the rank, the better Aon is in the corresponding investment strategy.
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Combined financial peformance in Detail

RESEARCH HISTORY	2021	2022	2023	2024
VALUE
VALUE	1	1	17	1
GROWTH
GROWTH	28	35	25	35
SAFETY
SAFETY	11	4	4	4
COMBINED
COMBINED	6	17	17	17

Last update of combined financial performance: 6-Oct-2022. Stock analysis on combined financial performance: The higher the rank of Aon the better the performance.

Value Metrics in Detail

ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Value Rank of 1 (worse than 99% compared with alternatives), Aon shares are significantly more expensive than comparable stocks. The Value Rank is based on consolidating four value indicators, with all four indicators below average for Aon. Price-to-Sales is 1 which means that the stock price compared with what market professionals expect for future profits is higher than 99% of comparable companies, indicating a low value concerning Aon's sales levels. Price-to-Book Capital (also referred to as market-to-book ratio) also has a low Price-to-Book Rank of 1, which means that both reliable company size indicators, sales, and invested capital cannot explain the high stock price of Aon. In addition, the two profit-related value indicators, Price-to-Profit (also referred to as price-earnings, P/E) with a low rank of 4 and Dividend Yield, which is lower than 97% of comparable companies, also make the stock more expensive compared with investment alternatives. ...read more

RECOMMENDATION: The overall picture with a consolidated Value Rank of 1, is a sell recommendation based on Aon's stock price compared with the company's operational size and dividend yields. How can market participants pay such a high price for Aon? One reason may be that the company is simply too popular. If enough people want a particular stock, its price can exceed reasonable levels. This is often the case for companies offering new and exciting products and everybody wants a piece of the action. Should you pay a lot for a hot stock such as Aon? It's risky, and even if the stock price continues to grow because of popular demand, it may return to more typical lower levels later. And that return can be sudden and quick, making it impossible for retail investors to exit on time. Sometimes, high prices are deserved. This is the case when it is justified to believe that the company will dominate a market with high profit margins. It has happened in the past for many technology companies and indeed for commercially successful pharmaceutical discoveries. Sometimes they last, sometimes, they get eaten alive. Aon may be such a type of stock. That would mean, retail investors should be careful, only considering investing a small part of their wealth in this exciting category and always being ready to lose more than half, if not all of the investment. We recommend further analyzing the stock with Obermatt’s Value, Safety, and Sentiment Ranks, including the 360° View, before making an investment decision, which is essential in this case, as the financial indicators are inconclusive. ...read more

VALUE METRICS	2021	2022	2023	2024
PRICE VS. REVENUES (P/S)
PRICE VS. REVENUES (P/S)	8	5	3	1
PRICE VS. PROFITS (P/E)
PRICE VS. PROFITS (P/E)	8	5	5	4
PRICE VS. CAPITAL (Market-to-Book)
PRICE VS. CAPITAL (Market-to-Book)	1	1	100	1
DIVIDEND YIELD
DIVIDEND YIELD	28	3	4	3
CONSOLIDATED RANK: VALUE
CONSOLIDATED RANK: VALUE	1	1	17	1

Last update of Value Rank: 19-Dec-2024. Stock analysis on value ratios: The higher the rank, the lower the value ratio of Aon; except for dividend yield where the rank is higher, the higher the yield.

Growth Metrics in Detail

ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Growth Rank of 35 (better than 35% compared with alternatives), Aon shows a below-average growth dynamic in its industry. There is limited momentum in this company. The Growth Rank is based on consolidating four value indicators, with half of the indicators below and half above average for Aon. Sales Growth has a rank of 91, which means that, currently, professionals expect the company to grow more than 91% of its competitors. Profit Growth with a rank of 55 is also above average. But Capital Growth has only a rank of 1, and Stock Returns with 31 are also below-average. Stock returns for Aon have recently been below 69% of alternative investments. ...read more

RECOMMENDATION: The overall picture with a consolidated Growth Rank of 35, is a hold recommendation for growth and momentum investors. Are investors forecasting troubles based on the lack of operating investment activity at the company? This could be one explanation as to why stock returns are low. But stock returns can also be the result of correcting an error in the past, in this case, an overly optimistic outlook on the future, which is now more realistic. The Value Ranks may confirm such a picture. The more important growth indicators are revenues and profits, which are both above average for Aon. This is a positive sign from the company's operational side and may give investors courage, despite the poor recent stock price performance. While momentum is a popular investment factor, the value aspect might be the more important one, in the longer term. We recommend analyzing the stock with the Obermatt Value, Safety, and Sentiment Ranks to arrive at a 360° View of the stock purchase case, especially since the growth performance is mixed here. ...read more

GROWTH METRICS	2021	2022	2023	2024
REVENUE GROWTH
REVENUE GROWTH	24	60	73	91
PROFIT GROWTH
PROFIT GROWTH	36	34	49	55
CAPITAL GROWTH
CAPITAL GROWTH	n/a	11	1	1
STOCK RETURNS
STOCK RETURNS	71	69	21	31
CONSOLIDATED RANK: GROWTH
CONSOLIDATED RANK: GROWTH	28	35	25	35

Last update of Growth Rank: 19-Dec-2024. Stock analysis on growth metrics: The higher the rank, the higher the growth and returns of Aon.

Safety Metrics in Detail

ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Safety Rank of 4 (better than 4% compared with alternatives), the company Aon has much riskier financing practices than comparable other companies, which means that their overall debt burden is significantly above the industry average. This doesn't mean that the business of Aon is also risky, it only means that the company is on the riskier side in respect to bankruptcy in case things turn sour, assuming that public reporting is correct. The Safety Rank is based on consolidating three financing indicators, with all three metrics below average for Aon. Liquidity is at 47, meaning that the company generates less profit to service its debt than 53% of its competitors. This indicates that the company is on the riskier side when it comes to debt service. Even worse, Leverage is at a rank of 1, meaning the company has an above-average debt-to-equity ratio. It has more debt than 99% of its competitors. Finally, Refinancing is at a rank of 29 which means that the portion of the debt about to be refinanced is above average. It has more debt in the refinancing stage than 71% of its competitors. ...read more

RECOMMENDATION: With a consolidated Safety Rank of 4 (worse than 96% compared with alternatives), Aon has a financing structure that is significantly riskier than that of its competitors. This combination is rather dangerous in most situations. Only very promising companies with bright future outlooks and stellar reputations can operate with such risky financing. Investors should look at Obermatt’s Value, Growth, and Sentiment Ranks to confirm a very positive outlook or be careful with investing in stocks of Aon because it may suffer significantly in case of future difficulties. ...read more

SAFETY METRICS	2021	2022	2023	2024
LEVERAGE
LEVERAGE	41	4	1	1
REFINANCING
REFINANCING	29	29	29	29
LIQUIDITY
LIQUIDITY	24	43	43	47
CONSOLIDATED RANK: SAFETY
CONSOLIDATED RANK: SAFETY	11	4	4	4

Last update of Safety Rank: 6-Oct-2022. Stock analysis on safety metrics: The higher the rank, the lower the leverage of Aon and the more cash is available to service its debt.

Sentiment Metrics in Detail

SENTIMENT	2021	2022	2023	2024
ANALYST OPINIONS
ANALYST OPINIONS	n/a	1	12	^new
OPINIONS CHANGE
OPINIONS CHANGE	n/a	87	31	^new
PRO HOLDINGS
PRO HOLDINGS	n/a	100	93	^new
MARKET PULSE
MARKET PULSE	n/a	8	21	^new
CONSOLIDATED RANK: SENTIMENT
CONSOLIDATED RANK: SENTIMENT	n/a	45	27	^new

Last update of Sentiment Rank: 19-Dec-2024. Stock analysis on sentiment metrics: The higher the rank, the more positive the sentiment for Aon.
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