Fiera Capital Corp Cuts Stock Position in A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS)

Fiera Capital Corp trimmed its stake in shares of A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS - Free Report) by 2.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 715,372 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 17,907 shares during the quarter. Fiera Capital Corp owned approximately 0.49% of A. O. Smith worth $48,796,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in AOS. Waldron Private Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in A. O. Smith during the third quarter worth approximately $32,000. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC acquired a new stake in A. O. Smith in the third quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Brooklyn Investment Group acquired a new stake in A. O. Smith in the third quarter valued at approximately $43,000. Truvestments Capital LLC acquired a new stake in A. O. Smith in the third quarter valued at approximately $55,000. Finally, Ridgewood Investments LLC acquired a new stake in A. O. Smith in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $60,000. 76.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at A. O. Smith

In related news, SVP Douglas Samuel Karge sold 419 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.65, for a total transaction of $27,507.35. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 2,749 shares in the company, valued at approximately $180,471.85. The trade was a 13.23 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, VP Robert J. Heideman sold 1,026 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.65, for a total value of $67,356.90. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 8,889 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $583,562.85. The trade was a 10.35 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 2.70% of the company's stock.

A. O. Smith Stock Performance

A. O. Smith stock traded up $0.22 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $66.22. 1,719,948 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,574,804. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $69.10 and its 200 day simple moving average is $75.92. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.60 billion, a PE ratio of 18.24, a P/E/G ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 1.17. A. O. Smith Co. has a one year low of $64.55 and a one year high of $92.44. The company has a quick ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 1.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10.

A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results 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%. On average, sell-side analysts expect that A. O. Smith Co. will post 3.77 earnings per share for the current year.

A. O. Smith Announces Dividend

The company 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 31st. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.05%. A. O. Smith's payout ratio is presently 37.47%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the company. Citigroup reduced their price objective on A. O. Smith from $78.00 to $73.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c)" rating on shares of A. O. Smith in a research report on Saturday, February 1st. UBS Group cut their target price 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. Robert W. Baird cut their target price on A. O. Smith from $82.00 to $81.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, DA Davidson cut 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. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, A. O. Smith currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $80.86.

A. O. Smith 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.