Erste Asset Management GmbH Trims Holdings in AAON, Inc. (NASDAQ:AAON)

Erste Asset Management GmbH lessened its position in shares of AAON, Inc. (NASDAQ:AAON - Free Report) by 16.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 62,132 shares of the construction company's stock after selling 12,288 shares during the quarter. Erste Asset Management GmbH owned approximately 0.08% of AAON worth $7,497,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Swiss National Bank grew its position in AAON by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 135,425 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $15,937,000 after buying an additional 1,200 shares during the period. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. grew its position in shares of AAON by 51.6% in the fourth quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 74,876 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $8,811,000 after purchasing an additional 25,476 shares during the period. PFG Advisors acquired a new stake in shares of AAON in the fourth quarter valued at about $1,141,000. HighTower Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of AAON by 2.2% in the fourth quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 13,328 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $1,568,000 after purchasing an additional 285 shares during the period. Finally, Inspire Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of AAON by 2.7% in the fourth quarter. Inspire Advisors LLC now owns 10,812 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $1,272,000 after purchasing an additional 286 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.81% of the company's stock.

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AAON Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:AAON traded down $2.86 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $79.80. The company's stock had a trading volume of 892,746 shares, compared to its average volume of 945,315. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $108.51 and its 200 day simple moving average is $113.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a quick ratio of 1.79 and a current ratio of 3.06. The company has a market cap of $6.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.15 and a beta of 1.00. AAON, Inc. has a 12-month low of $69.52 and a 12-month high of $144.07.

AAON declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase program on Tuesday, March 4th that permits the company to buyback $30.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the construction company to purchase up to 0.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually a sign that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

AAON Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 18th will be paid a dividend of $0.10 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 18th. This is an increase from AAON's previous quarterly dividend of $0.08. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.50%. AAON's payout ratio is 19.90%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director David Raymond Stewart bought 1,000 shares of AAON stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $80.86 per share, with a total value of $80,860.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 3,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $242,580. This trade represents a 50.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 18.55% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. StockNews.com lowered shares of AAON from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Robert W. Baird dropped their target price on shares of AAON from $155.00 to $116.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 28th. DA Davidson dropped their target price on shares of AAON from $150.00 to $125.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Finally, CJS Securities raised shares of AAON from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $110.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 28th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, AAON currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $115.50.

AAON Company Profile

AAON, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in engineering, manufacturing, marketing, and selling air conditioning and heating equipment in the United States and Canada. The company operates through three segments: AAON Oklahoma, AAON Coil Products, and BASX. It offers rooftop units, data center cooling solutions, cleanroom systems, chillers, packaged outdoor mechanical rooms, air handling units, makeup air units, energy recovery units, condensing units, geothermal/water-source heat pumps, coils, and controls.