A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS) Stock Holdings Increased by Benjamin Edwards Inc.

Benjamin Edwards Inc. increased its holdings in shares of A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS - Free Report) by 6,682.4% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 77,387 shares of the industrial products company's stock after purchasing an additional 76,246 shares during the period. Benjamin Edwards Inc. owned 0.05% of A. O. Smith worth $6,951,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. grew its stake in shares of A. O. Smith by 7.2% during the second quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 2,007 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $164,000 after acquiring an additional 134 shares in the last quarter. Huntington National Bank grew its position in shares of A. O. Smith by 19.8% during the third quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 812 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $73,000 after buying an additional 134 shares in the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. increased its stake in shares of A. O. Smith by 12.5% in the third quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 1,227 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $110,000 after buying an additional 136 shares during the last quarter. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC raised its holdings in A. O. Smith by 5.0% in the third quarter. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC now owns 2,989 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $269,000 after acquiring an additional 142 shares in the last quarter. Finally, OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC boosted its stake in A. O. Smith by 5.1% during the 3rd quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 3,240 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $291,000 after acquiring an additional 156 shares during the last quarter. 76.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

A. O. Smith Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE AOS traded down $0.86 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $73.79. 285,795 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 964,317. A. O. Smith Co. has a twelve month low of $70.73 and a twelve month high of $92.44. The firm has a market cap of $10.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.38, a PEG ratio of 1.97 and a beta of 1.16. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $78.91 and its 200-day moving average price is $81.30. 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 issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The industrial products company reported $0.82 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.82. The company had revenue of $957.80 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $960.36 million. A. O. Smith had a return on equity of 30.09% and a net margin of 14.41%. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.90 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that A. O. Smith Co. will post 3.78 EPS for the current year.

A. O. Smith Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, October 31st were paid a dividend of $0.34 per share. This is a positive change from A. O. Smith's previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. This represents a $1.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.84%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, October 31st. A. O. Smith's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 35.79%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AOS has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus cut their target price on shares of A. O. Smith from $92.00 to $91.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Robert W. Baird cut their price objective on A. O. Smith from $82.00 to $81.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. DA Davidson lowered A. O. Smith from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $80.00 target price for the company. in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. StockNews.com raised A. O. Smith from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. Finally, UBS Group upgraded A. O. Smith from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $75.00 to $80.00 in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, A. O. Smith presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $86.71.

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.