3,146 Shares in A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS) Bought by Voleon Capital Management LP

Voleon Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 3,146 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $215,000.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AOS. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its position in A. O. Smith by 11.7% in the 4th quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 423,137 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $28,862,000 after buying an additional 44,403 shares during the last quarter. Lido Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of A. O. Smith by 3.3% during the fourth quarter. Lido Advisors LLC now owns 10,583 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $722,000 after acquiring an additional 334 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp boosted its stake in shares of A. O. Smith by 22.0% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,475,503 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $100,644,000 after purchasing an additional 266,297 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP purchased a new stake in shares of A. O. Smith in the 4th quarter valued at $479,000. Finally, Earnest Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of A. O. Smith by 3.6% during the 4th quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 2,058,731 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $140,426,000 after purchasing an additional 70,989 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 76.10% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Robert J. Heideman sold 1,026 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 7th. The shares were 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 $583,562.85. This represents a 10.35 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, SVP Douglas Samuel Karge sold 419 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.65, for a total transaction of $27,507.35. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 2,749 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $180,471.85. This represents a 13.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.76% of the company’s stock.

A. O. Smith Stock Performance

Shares of AOS stock opened at $67.37 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 1.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $65.32 and a 200 day moving average of $69.32. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.56, a PEG ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 1.26. A. O. Smith Co. has a 52 week low of $58.83 and a 52 week high of $92.45.

A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The industrial products company reported $0.95 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.90 by $0.05. A. O. Smith had a net margin of 13.98% and a return on equity of 28.87%. The company had revenue of $963.90 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $950.56 million. A. O. Smith’s quarterly revenue was down 1.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.00 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that A. O. Smith Co. will post 3.76 earnings per share for the current year.

A. O. Smith Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 30th will be given a dividend of $0.34 per share. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.02%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 30th. A. O. Smith’s dividend payout ratio is currently 37.47%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have issued reports on AOS shares. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on shares of A. O. Smith from $75.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday. StockNews.com upgraded A. O. Smith from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. UBS Group lowered their price objective on A. O. Smith from $80.00 to $74.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Oppenheimer cut their target price on shares of A. O. Smith from $88.00 to $84.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Robert W. Baird upped their price target on shares of A. O. Smith from $75.00 to $76.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $76.17.

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.