A. O. Smith’s (AOS) Hold (C) Rating Reiterated at Weiss Ratings

Weiss Ratings restated their hold (c) rating on shares of A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS) in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday,Weiss Ratings reports.

AOS has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Citigroup dropped their price target on A. O. Smith from $78.00 to $73.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 13th. 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 note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price target on A. O. Smith from $90.00 to $84.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Oppenheimer dropped their price target 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, Robert W. Baird dropped their price target on A. O. Smith from $82.00 to $81.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $80.86.

A. O. Smith Stock Performance

Shares of A. O. Smith stock opened at $65.99 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $9.57 billion, a PE ratio of 18.18, a P/E/G ratio of 1.49 and a beta of 1.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a current ratio of 1.55. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $68.44 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $75.40. A. O. Smith has a one year low of $64.55 and a one year high of $92.44.

A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The industrial products company reported $0.85 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.90 by ($0.05). A. O. Smith had a return on equity of 28.87% and a net margin of 13.98%. Research analysts expect that A. O. Smith will post 3.77 EPS for the current fiscal year.

A. O. Smith Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 31st were issued a $0.34 dividend. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.06%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 31st. A. O. Smith’s payout ratio is currently 37.47%.

Insider Buying and Selling at A. O. Smith

In other news, SVP Douglas Samuel Karge sold 419 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 7th. The stock was 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 approximately $180,471.85. This represents a 13.23 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, VP Robert J. Heideman sold 1,026 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.65, for a total value of $67,356.90. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 8,889 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $583,562.85. This trade represents a 10.35 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.70% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On A. O. Smith

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Waldron Private Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of A. O. Smith during the 3rd quarter worth about $32,000. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new position in A. O. Smith during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $43,000. Truvestments Capital LLC purchased a new position in A. O. Smith during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $55,000. Ridgewood Investments LLC purchased a new position in A. O. Smith during the 4th quarter worth approximately $60,000. Finally, New Age Alpha Advisors LLC purchased a new position in A. O. Smith during the 4th quarter worth approximately $66,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.10% of the company’s stock.

A. O. Smith Company Profile

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.