Centaurus Financial Inc. Decreases Stake in A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS)

Centaurus Financial Inc. decreased its holdings in shares of A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS) by 24.1% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,849 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 587 shares during the quarter. Centaurus Financial Inc.’s holdings in A. O. Smith were worth $166,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of AOS. Legacy Capital Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in A. O. Smith in the 2nd quarter valued at about $228,000. Cetera Investment Advisers increased its holdings in shares of A. O. Smith by 222.0% in the first quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 25,255 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,259,000 after purchasing an additional 17,411 shares during the last quarter. Tidal Investments LLC increased its holdings in shares of A. O. Smith by 119.8% in the first quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 21,400 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,914,000 after purchasing an additional 11,663 shares during the last quarter. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC acquired a new position in A. O. Smith during the second quarter worth $4,127,000. Finally, Swedbank AB purchased a new stake in A. O. Smith in the 1st quarter valued at $1,495,000. 76.10% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

A. O. Smith Stock Performance

Shares of AOS stock opened at $74.09 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.67. The firm has a market cap of $10.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.50, a P/E/G ratio of 2.00 and a beta of 1.17. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $79.64 and its 200-day moving average price is $81.63. 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) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 22nd. The industrial products company reported $0.82 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.82. The business had revenue of $957.80 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations 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 in the previous year, the firm posted $0.90 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that A. O. Smith Co. will post 3.78 EPS for the current year.

A. O. Smith Increases Dividend

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. UBS Group upgraded A. O. Smith from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $75.00 to $80.00 in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. DA Davidson downgraded shares of A. O. Smith from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $80.00 target price on the stock. in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Robert W. Baird decreased their target price on shares of A. O. Smith from $82.00 to $81.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. StockNews.com upgraded shares of A. O. Smith from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price objective on A. O. Smith from $92.00 to $91.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus 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.