A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS) Shares Purchased by National Bank of Canada FI

National Bank of Canada FI grew its stake in shares of A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS - Free Report) by 84.5% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 61,239 shares of the industrial products company's stock after acquiring an additional 28,045 shares during the period. National Bank of Canada FI's holdings in A. O. Smith were worth $5,501,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of AOS. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. bought a new position in shares of A. O. Smith during the 2nd quarter worth $25,000. Isthmus Partners LLC purchased a new position in A. O. Smith during the 2nd quarter valued at about $27,000. Quarry LP raised its holdings in shares of A. O. Smith by 214.9% in the 2nd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 359 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 245 shares in the last quarter. Waldron Private Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of A. O. Smith in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $32,000. Finally, Wolff Wiese Magana LLC bought a new stake in A. O. Smith during the 3rd quarter valued at $37,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.10% of the company's stock.

A. O. Smith Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:AOS traded down $0.14 during trading on Friday, hitting $72.49. The stock had a trading volume of 940,526 shares, compared to its average volume of 967,897. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $76.49 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $80.68. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 1.16. A. O. Smith Co. has a 12-month low of $70.73 and a 12-month high of $92.44. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06.

A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 22nd. The industrial products company reported $0.82 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.82. A. O. Smith had a net margin of 14.41% and a return on equity of 30.09%. The firm had revenue of $957.80 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $960.36 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.90 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts expect that A. O. Smith Co. will post 3.78 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

A. O. Smith Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 31st were paid a $0.34 dividend. This is an increase from A. O. Smith's previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, October 31st. This represents a $1.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.88%. A. O. Smith's dividend payout ratio is presently 35.79%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on AOS shares. UBS Group upgraded A. O. Smith from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $75.00 to $80.00 in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. StockNews.com cut shares of A. O. Smith from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday. Robert W. Baird decreased their price objective on A. O. Smith from $82.00 to $81.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. DA Davidson downgraded A. O. Smith from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $80.00 target price on the stock. in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price target on A. O. Smith from $91.00 to $90.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $83.17.

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.