A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS) Sees Significant Increase in Short Interest

A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS - Get Free Report) saw a significant increase in short interest in the month of January. As of January 15th, there was short interest totalling 4,150,000 shares, an increase of 6.7% from the December 31st total of 3,890,000 shares. Approximately 3.5% of the company's stock are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 1,060,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 3.9 days.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On A. O. Smith

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new stake in A. O. Smith during the 3rd quarter valued at about $1,726,000. Sanctuary Advisors LLC acquired a new position in A. O. Smith in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $1,372,000. FORA Capital LLC purchased a new position in A. O. Smith during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $730,000. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in A. O. Smith by 1.5% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,586,905 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $321,348,000 after acquiring an additional 52,593 shares during the period. Finally, WealthPlan Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in A. O. Smith by 89.3% during the 3rd quarter. WealthPlan Investment Management LLC now owns 36,206 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $3,252,000 after acquiring an additional 17,079 shares during the period. 76.10% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

A. O. Smith Stock Down 0.5 %

AOS stock traded down $0.32 on Friday, hitting $65.19. 1,263,832 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,518,397. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $69.85 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $76.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a current ratio of 1.55. A. O. Smith has a 12-month low of $64.94 and a 12-month high of $92.44. The stock has a market cap of $9.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.49 and a beta of 1.17.

A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The industrial products company reported $0.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing 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%. As a group, equities research analysts expect that A. O. Smith will post 3.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

A. O. Smith Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 31st will be issued a $0.34 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 31st. This represents a $1.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.09%. A. O. Smith's dividend payout ratio is currently 37.47%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have commented on the stock. DA Davidson downgraded shares of A. O. Smith from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $80.00 target price on the stock. in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Oppenheimer reduced 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 note on Friday, January 31st. Citigroup lowered their target price on A. O. Smith from $78.00 to $73.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 13th. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price target on A. O. Smith from $90.00 to $84.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, UBS Group dropped their price objective on A. O. Smith from $80.00 to $74.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, A. O. Smith currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $80.86.

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.