A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS) Shares Sold by Pictet Asset Management Holding SA

Pictet Asset Management Holding SA decreased its stake in shares of A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS - Free Report) by 0.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 1,114,205 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 10,039 shares during the quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA owned about 0.77% of A. O. Smith worth $76,000,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of AOS. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of A. O. Smith by 1.1% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 14,117,943 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $962,985,000 after acquiring an additional 148,432 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its stake in A. O. Smith by 4.0% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 7,721,581 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $693,630,000 after purchasing an additional 299,766 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in A. O. Smith by 1.5% during 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 purchasing an additional 52,593 shares during the last quarter. KBC Group NV grew its stake in shares of A. O. Smith by 40.1% in the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,648,825 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $112,467,000 after buying an additional 471,990 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of A. O. Smith in the 4th quarter worth about $96,180,000. 76.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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A. O. Smith Trading Down 4.1 %

Shares of NYSE:AOS traded down $2.68 on Thursday, hitting $63.44. 360,575 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,086,706. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 1.26. A. O. Smith Co. has a 12 month low of $63.07 and a 12 month high of $92.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a current ratio of 1.55 and a quick ratio of 0.96. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $66.92 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $72.67.

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 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%. Analysts anticipate that A. O. Smith Co. will post 3.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

A. O. Smith Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 31st were given a dividend of $0.34 per share. This represents a $1.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.14%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 31st. A. O. Smith's payout ratio is 37.47%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently commented on AOS shares. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of A. O. Smith in a research report on Saturday, March 22nd. StockNews.com upgraded A. O. Smith from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Stifel Nicolaus cut their target price on A. O. Smith from $90.00 to $84.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Oppenheimer lowered their price target on A. O. Smith from $88.00 to $84.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Citigroup cut their price objective 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. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $80.86.

Insider Activity at A. O. Smith

In related news, SVP Douglas Samuel Karge sold 419 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.65, for a total value of $27,507.35. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 2,749 shares of the company's stock, valued at $180,471.85. The trade was a 13.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP Robert J. Heideman sold 1,026 shares of the 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.76% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.