Aon plc is better positioned than its peers to capitalise on advances in artificial intelligence, according to a research note published by TD Cowen. The note assigned a “Buy” rating to the London-headquartered insurance brokerage and set a 12-month price target of $416 per share.
The report, authored by managing director Andrew Kligerman and a team of insurance analysts, argues that Aon’s years-long investment in data infrastructure has left the company well placed to extract tangible benefits from AI – a distinction the analysts say the market has yet to fully appreciate.
At the core of that strategy is Aon Business Services (ABS), a single back-office platform introduced in 2018 that provides data and analytics services across all of the company’s business segments. The analysts described ABS as the backbone of Aon’s AI readiness, noting that the data and tools needed to deploy AI at scale are already in place.
Among the most visible products of that investment are client-facing tools Aon calls risk analysers. According to the report, these instruments have already contributed to revenue growth, providing a concrete example of AI delivering commercial results rather than remaining a theoretical prospect.
In 2023, Aon deepened its commitment through a programme called “Accelerating Aon United,” a three-year initiative involving $1.3b in aggregate investment targeting $450m in total savings. The plan explicitly called for continuous investment in ABS and the reduction of divisions between Aon’s Risk Capital and Human Capital units, creating integrated solutions underpinned by shared data.
Aon’s full-year and fourth-quarter 2025 results, released in early 2026, showed 9% total revenue growth and double-digit free cash flow expansion, with adjusted earnings per share exceeding analyst expectations. The performance was underpinned by continued organic growth and disciplined execution of the Aon United strategy.
The analysts noted that Aon’s approach has drawn indirect endorsement from a competitor. Marsh McLennan recently announced its own Business and Client Services initiative, describing it as a move to “accelerate innovation and centralise investments in operational excellence, data, AI, and analytics” – a framework closely mirroring what Aon has been building for nearly a decade.
TD Cowen said it expects Aon’s management to address its AI positioning directly following first-quarter 2026 earnings, due in April or May. The analysts characterised current market nervousness around AI disintermediation as an opportunity for Aon to remind investors of its long-term strategy rather than a genuine threat to its business model.
