A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS) Given Average Rating of “Hold” by Brokerages

A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS) has been given a consensus recommendation of “Hold” by the six ratings firms that are covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating on the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $76.50.

Several analysts have recently issued reports on AOS shares. StockNews.com raised A. O. Smith from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Oppenheimer lowered their price objective on shares of A. O. Smith from $88.00 to $84.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their target price on shares of A. O. Smith from $84.00 to $75.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. Citigroup lowered their price target on shares of A. O. Smith from $69.00 to $65.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 14th. Finally, UBS Group reduced their price objective on A. O. Smith from $80.00 to $74.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 31st.

A. O. Smith Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE AOS opened at $63.09 on Friday. A. O. Smith has a 1 year low of $58.83 and a 1 year high of $92.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a current ratio of 1.55 and a quick ratio of 0.96. The stock has a market cap of $9.08 billion, a PE ratio of 17.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 1.26. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $65.50 and a 200-day moving average price of $70.62.

A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The industrial products company reported $0.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.90 by ($0.05). A. O. Smith had a net margin of 13.98% and a return on equity of 28.87%. Equities analysts anticipate that A. O. Smith will post 3.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

A. O. Smith Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 30th will be paid a $0.34 dividend. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.16%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 30th. A. O. Smith’s dividend payout ratio is presently 37.47%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Douglas Samuel Karge sold 419 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.65, for a total transaction of $27,507.35. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 2,749 shares in the company, valued at approximately $180,471.85. This trade represents a 13.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, VP Robert J. Heideman sold 1,026 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.65, for a total transaction of $67,356.90. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 8,889 shares in the company, valued at approximately $583,562.85. The trade was a 10.35 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.76% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On A. O. Smith

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Ridgewood Investments LLC purchased a new position in shares of A. O. Smith in the 4th quarter valued at $60,000. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC purchased a new position in A. O. Smith in the fourth quarter valued at about $66,000. Canada Post Corp Registered Pension Plan bought a new position in A. O. Smith in the fourth quarter worth about $84,000. Signaturefd LLC boosted its holdings in shares of A. O. Smith by 40.0% in the 4th quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 1,299 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $89,000 after buying an additional 371 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Parallel Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of A. O. Smith by 40.4% during the 1st quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 1,571 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $103,000 after acquiring an additional 452 shares in the last quarter. 76.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About A. O. Smith

A. O. Smith Corporation manufactures and markets residential and commercial gas and electric water heaters, boilers, heat pumps, tanks, and water treatment products in North America, China, Europe, and India. The company offers water heaters for residences, restaurants, hotels, office buildings, laundries, car washes, and small businesses; boilers for hospitals, schools, hotels, and other large commercial buildings, as well as homes, apartments, and condominiums; and water treatment products comprising point-of-entry water softeners, well water solutions, and whole-home water filtration products, and point-of-use carbon and reverse osmosis products for residences, restaurants, hotels, and offices.