Weiss Ratings Reaffirms Hold (C) Rating for A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS)

A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "hold (c)" rating reissued by investment analysts at Weiss Ratings in a report issued on Friday,Weiss Ratings reports.

A number of other research firms have also weighed in on AOS. StockNews.com raised A. O. Smith from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. UBS Group reduced 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 report on Friday, January 31st. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price objective on A. O. Smith from $90.00 to $84.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Oppenheimer reduced their price objective on A. O. Smith from $88.00 to $84.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Citigroup cut their target price on shares of A. O. Smith from $78.00 to $73.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 13th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $80.86.

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A. O. Smith Stock Performance

NYSE:AOS traded down $2.48 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $67.13. The company had a trading volume of 1,939,561 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,449,016. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $67.99 and its 200-day moving average price is $74.29. The firm has a market cap of $9.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.49, a PEG ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 1.18. 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 has a 52 week low of $64.55 and a 52 week high of $92.44.

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

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Douglas Samuel Karge sold 419 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated 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 owns 2,749 shares of the company's stock, valued at $180,471.85. This trade represents a 13.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale 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 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 transaction of $67,356.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 8,889 shares of the company's stock, valued at $583,562.85. This represents a 10.35 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.76% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of AOS. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new position in A. O. Smith in the third quarter worth $1,726,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in A. O. Smith by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,231,084 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $83,972,000 after purchasing an additional 12,305 shares in the last quarter. FORA Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of A. O. Smith during the third quarter worth $730,000. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of 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 buying an additional 52,593 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Private Advisor Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of A. O. Smith by 124.5% in the fourth quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 6,694 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $457,000 after purchasing an additional 3,712 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.10% of the company's stock.

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.