Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. Acquires 231,259 Shares of A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS)

Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS) by 20.3% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 1,368,443 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 231,259 shares during the period. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd.’s holdings in A. O. Smith were worth $93,341,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AOS. Glenmede Trust Co. NA grew its holdings in A. O. Smith by 4.3% during the 3rd quarter. Glenmede Trust Co. NA now owns 3,992 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $359,000 after acquiring an additional 163 shares during the period. Greenleaf Trust increased its holdings in shares of A. O. Smith by 3.3% in the fourth quarter. Greenleaf Trust now owns 5,873 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $401,000 after acquiring an additional 188 shares in the last quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. raised its holdings in A. O. Smith by 2.0% during the 3rd quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 9,765 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $877,000 after buying an additional 196 shares during the period. Arizona State Retirement System lifted its position in A. O. Smith by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 34,838 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,376,000 after acquiring an additional 234 shares in the last quarter. Finally, M&T Bank Corp boosted its position in A. O. Smith by 3.9% during the 3rd quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 6,785 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $609,000 after acquiring an additional 253 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.10% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at A. O. Smith

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 sale, the vice president now owns 8,889 shares in the company, valued at approximately $583,562.85. This trade represents a 10.35 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, SVP Douglas Samuel Karge sold 419 shares of the business’s 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 $27,507.35. Following the transaction, 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. Insiders own 0.76% of the company’s stock.

A. O. Smith Stock Performance

NYSE AOS opened at $66.98 on Friday. A. O. Smith Co. has a 12-month low of $64.55 and a 12-month high of $92.45. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $67.42 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $73.08. The company has a market capitalization of $9.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.45, a P/E/G ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 1.18. The company has a quick ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 1.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10.

A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS) last issued its quarterly earnings results 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 return on equity of 28.87% and a net margin of 13.98%. Analysts anticipate that A. O. Smith Co. will post 3.76 earnings per share for the current year.

A. O. Smith Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 31st were paid a dividend of $0.34 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 31st. This represents a $1.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.03%. A. O. Smith’s payout ratio is 37.47%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the company. Citigroup lowered their target price on A. O. Smith from $78.00 to $73.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 13th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of A. O. Smith from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of A. O. Smith in a research note on Saturday, March 22nd. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price target on shares of A. O. Smith from $90.00 to $84.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Oppenheimer cut 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. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $80.86.

A. O. Smith Company Profile

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.