A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS) Shares Sold by Manning & Napier Advisors LLC

Manning & Napier Advisors LLC lessened its holdings in shares of A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS - Free Report) by 31.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 24,278 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 10,997 shares during the quarter. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC's holdings in A. O. Smith were worth $1,656,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Sarasin & Partners LLP acquired a new stake in shares of A. O. Smith in the third quarter worth $78,766,000. KBC Group NV increased its holdings in A. O. Smith by 40.1% in the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,648,825 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $112,467,000 after purchasing an additional 471,990 shares in the last quarter. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec raised its position in A. O. Smith by 92.4% in the third quarter. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec now owns 761,410 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $68,397,000 after purchasing an additional 365,710 shares during the period. State Street Corp lifted its stake in shares of A. O. Smith by 4.0% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 7,721,581 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $693,630,000 after purchasing an additional 299,766 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. purchased a new stake in shares of A. O. Smith in the third quarter worth about $24,060,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.10% of the company's stock.

A. O. Smith Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:AOS traded up $0.79 during trading on Friday, reaching $67.76. 101,702 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,332,829. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.44 and a beta of 1.18. A. O. Smith Co. has a 12 month low of $65.53 and a 12 month high of $92.44. The company has a 50 day moving average of $70.84 and a 200-day moving average of $77.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a current ratio of 1.67 and a quick ratio of 1.02.

A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The industrial products company reported $0.85 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.90 by ($0.05). A. O. Smith had a net margin of 14.41% and a return on equity of 30.09%. On average, equities analysts expect that A. O. Smith Co. will post 3.77 EPS for the current year.

A. O. Smith Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 31st will be paid a $0.34 dividend. This represents a $1.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.01%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 31st. A. O. Smith's payout ratio is 35.79%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AOS has been the topic of several analyst reports. Robert W. Baird dropped their target price on A. O. Smith from $82.00 to $81.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. StockNews.com upgraded shares of A. O. Smith from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday. DA Davidson cut shares of A. O. Smith from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $80.00 price objective for the company. in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price target on A. O. Smith from $91.00 to $90.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, UBS Group upgraded A. O. Smith from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $75.00 to $80.00 in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Five equities 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, A. O. Smith has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $83.14.

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.