Cannell & Spears LLC trimmed its holdings in A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS - Free Report) by 95.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 3,336 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 77,261 shares during the period. Cannell & Spears LLC's holdings in A. O. Smith were worth $228,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.
A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new position in shares of A. O. Smith during the third quarter worth about $1,726,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in shares of A. O. Smith by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,231,084 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $83,972,000 after purchasing an additional 12,305 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of A. O. Smith by 1.5% in the third 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 in the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. lifted its holdings in A. O. Smith by 7.1% in the 4th quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 27,825 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,898,000 after purchasing an additional 1,834 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Private Advisor Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of A. O. Smith by 124.5% during the fourth quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 6,694 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $457,000 after buying an additional 3,712 shares during the period. 76.10% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth
Several research firms recently issued reports on AOS. Citigroup decreased their target price on shares of A. O. Smith from $78.00 to $73.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of A. O. Smith in a report on Saturday, March 22nd. UBS Group dropped their price objective on A. O. Smith from $80.00 to $74.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. Oppenheimer cut their target price on A. O. Smith from $88.00 to $84.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded A. O. Smith from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note 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. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $80.86.
Check Out Our Latest Stock Analysis on AOS
A. O. Smith Price Performance
Shares of NYSE AOS traded down $1.74 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $61.92. The company had a trading volume of 1,853,079 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,095,425. A. O. Smith Co. has a 1-year low of $61.59 and a 1-year high of $92.45. The stock has a market cap of $8.91 billion, a PE ratio of 17.06, a P/E/G ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 1.26. The company has a current ratio of 1.55, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $66.77 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $72.61.
A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS - Get Free Report) last announced 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 return on equity of 28.87% and a net margin of 13.98%. On average, equities analysts anticipate that A. O. Smith Co. will post 3.76 earnings per share for the current year.
A. O. Smith Announces Dividend
The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 31st were issued a dividend of $0.34 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 31st. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.20%. A. O. Smith's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 37.47%.
Insiders Place Their Bets
In other A. O. Smith news, VP Robert J. Heideman sold 1,026 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.65, for a total value of $67,356.90. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 8,889 shares in the company, valued at $583,562.85. This trade represents a 10.35 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, SVP Douglas Samuel Karge sold 419 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.65, for a total value of $27,507.35. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 2,749 shares in the company, valued at $180,471.85. This represents a 13.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.76% of the company's stock.
About A. O. Smith
(
Free Report)
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.
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