UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC Buys 15,447 Shares of A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS)

UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its holdings in A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS - Free Report) by 2.3% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 697,582 shares of the industrial products company's stock after acquiring an additional 15,447 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC owned about 0.48% of A. O. Smith worth $62,664,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in AOS. Select Equity Group L.P. raised its stake in shares of A. O. Smith by 11.6% during the 2nd quarter. Select Equity Group L.P. now owns 3,852,467 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $315,055,000 after purchasing an additional 400,304 shares during the period. Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of A. O. Smith by 3.9% during the 3rd quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 2,302,659 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $206,848,000 after acquiring an additional 87,458 shares during the period. Earnest Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of A. O. Smith by 3.7% in the 2nd quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 2,046,798 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $167,387,000 after purchasing an additional 72,856 shares during the period. Sei Investments Co. grew its holdings in A. O. Smith by 5.0% during the second quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 1,393,519 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $113,962,000 after purchasing an additional 66,933 shares during the period. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake in A. O. Smith by 1.7% in the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,194,731 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $97,708,000 after acquiring an additional 19,890 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.10% of the company's stock.

A. O. Smith Price Performance

Shares of AOS traded down $0.63 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $74.02. 1,134,148 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 967,996. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $78.91 and a 200-day simple moving average of $81.30. The company has a market capitalization of $10.73 billion, a PE ratio of 19.49, a PEG ratio of 1.98 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a current ratio of 1.67 and a quick ratio of 1.02. A. O. Smith Co. has a one year low of $70.73 and a one year high of $92.44.

A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The industrial products company reported $0.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.82. The company had revenue of $957.80 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $960.36 million. A. O. Smith had a return on equity of 30.09% and a net margin of 14.41%. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.90 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that A. O. Smith Co. will post 3.78 earnings per share for the current year.

A. O. Smith Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 31st were paid a $0.34 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, October 31st. This is a boost from A. O. Smith's previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. This represents a $1.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.84%. A. O. Smith's dividend payout ratio is 35.79%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on AOS. UBS Group upgraded A. O. Smith from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and upped their price target for the company from $75.00 to $80.00 in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. DA Davidson lowered A. O. Smith from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $80.00 price target on the stock. in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price target on shares of A. O. Smith from $92.00 to $91.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. StockNews.com raised A. O. Smith from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. Finally, Robert W. Baird reduced their price objective on A. O. Smith from $82.00 to $81.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, A. O. Smith currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $86.71.

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.