Raymond James Financial Inc. Acquires New Stake in AAON, Inc. (NASDAQ:AAON)

Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of AAON, Inc. (NASDAQ:AAON - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 622,987 shares of the construction company's stock, valued at approximately $73,313,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. owned 0.77% of AAON as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in AAON. Mather Group LLC. raised its position in shares of AAON by 521.6% in the fourth quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 230 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 193 shares during the period. Westside Investment Management Inc. bought a new stake in AAON during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $36,000. UMB Bank n.a. grew its position in shares of AAON by 67.5% during the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 325 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 131 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. raised its position in shares of AAON by 28.4% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 380 shares of the construction company's stock worth $41,000 after buying an additional 84 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC bought a new stake in AAON during the fourth quarter valued at $42,000. 70.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently commented on the company. StockNews.com cut AAON from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Robert W. Baird reduced their price objective on shares of AAON from $155.00 to $116.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 28th. DA Davidson reduced their price target on shares of AAON from $150.00 to $125.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Finally, CJS Securities upgraded shares of AAON from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $110.00 price target for the company in a research note on Friday, February 28th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating, four have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, AAON presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $115.50.

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AAON Stock Up 3.2 %

NASDAQ:AAON traded up $2.58 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $82.37. 839,493 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 651,497. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a quick ratio of 1.79 and a current ratio of 3.06. The company has a market capitalization of $6.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.40 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a fifty day moving average of $111.48 and a 200 day moving average of $113.88. AAON, Inc. has a twelve month low of $69.52 and a twelve month high of $144.07.

AAON Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 18th will be paid a dividend of $0.10 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 18th. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.49%. This is a positive change from AAON's previous quarterly dividend of $0.08. AAON's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 19.90%.

AAON declared that its board has authorized a share repurchase program on Tuesday, March 4th that allows the company to repurchase $30.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the construction company to reacquire up to 0.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are often a sign that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other AAON news, VP Stephen E. Wakefield sold 5,362 shares of AAON stock in a transaction on Friday, December 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $130.99, for a total value of $702,368.38. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 4,558 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $597,052.42. The trade was a 54.05 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 18.55% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

AAON Company Profile

AAON, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in engineering, manufacturing, marketing, and selling air conditioning and heating equipment in the United States and Canada. The company operates through three segments: AAON Oklahoma, AAON Coil Products, and BASX. It offers rooftop units, data center cooling solutions, cleanroom systems, chillers, packaged outdoor mechanical rooms, air handling units, makeup air units, energy recovery units, condensing units, geothermal/water-source heat pumps, coils, and controls.