Korea Investment CORP Has $7.67 Million Stock Holdings in A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS)

Korea Investment CORP grew its holdings in A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS - Free Report) by 72.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 112,505 shares of the industrial products company's stock after purchasing an additional 47,200 shares during the period. Korea Investment CORP owned about 0.08% of A. O. Smith worth $7,674,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Ridgewood Investments LLC purchased a new position in A. O. Smith during the fourth quarter valued at $60,000. Signaturefd LLC increased its stake in shares of A. O. Smith by 40.0% during the fourth quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 1,299 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $89,000 after buying an additional 371 shares during the period. Kieckhefer Group LLC purchased a new stake in A. O. Smith in the fourth quarter worth about $123,000. Mutual Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of A. O. Smith in the 4th quarter valued at about $209,000. Finally, Stevens Capital Management LP bought a new stake in A. O. Smith during the 4th quarter valued at $214,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.10% of the company's stock.

A. O. Smith Trading Down 1.4 %

Shares of NYSE AOS traded down $0.89 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $62.77. 794,286 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,091,425. The company has a market capitalization of $9.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.33, 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. A. O. Smith Co. has a 52-week low of $61.59 and a 52-week high of $92.45. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $66.77 and a 200-day moving average price of $72.61.

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A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The industrial products company reported $0.85 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.90 by ($0.05). A. O. Smith had a net margin of 13.98% and a return on equity of 28.87%. Equities research analysts expect that A. O. Smith Co. will post 3.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

A. O. Smith Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Investors of record on Friday, January 31st were issued a $0.34 dividend. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.17%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 31st. A. O. Smith's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 37.47%.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Douglas Samuel Karge sold 419 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.65, for a total transaction of $27,507.35. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 2,749 shares in the company, valued at $180,471.85. This represents a 13.23 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, VP Robert J. Heideman sold 1,026 shares of A. O. Smith stock in a transaction on Friday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.65, for a total transaction of $67,356.90. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 8,889 shares in the company, valued at $583,562.85. This represents a 10.35 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.76% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AOS has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Citigroup reduced their target price on 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. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price objective 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. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of A. O. Smith in a report on Saturday, March 22nd. UBS Group decreased their price target on shares of A. O. Smith from $80.00 to $74.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of A. O. Smith from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Five equities research 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, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price 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.