A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS) Shares Sold by Natixis Advisors LLC

Natixis Advisors LLC trimmed its position in A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS) by 7.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 200,876 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 15,473 shares during the quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC owned approximately 0.14% of A. O. Smith worth $13,702,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Brooklyn Investment Group acquired a new position in A. O. Smith in the third quarter valued at approximately $43,000. Truvestments Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of A. O. Smith during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $55,000. Ridgewood Investments LLC purchased a new position in shares of A. O. Smith in the 4th quarter valued at $60,000. Transamerica Financial Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in A. O. Smith during the 3rd quarter worth $82,000. Finally, Kieckhefer Group LLC purchased a new stake in A. O. Smith in the fourth quarter valued at $123,000. 76.10% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other A. O. Smith news, VP Robert J. Heideman sold 1,026 shares of the 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 completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 8,889 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $583,562.85. This trade represents a 10.35 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, SVP Douglas Samuel Karge sold 419 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.65, for a total value of $27,507.35. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 2,749 shares in the company, valued at $180,471.85. This trade represents a 13.23 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.76% of the company’s stock.

A. O. Smith Trading Down 0.1 %

Shares of A. O. Smith stock opened at $67.61 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $9.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 1.18. A. O. Smith Co. has a 52-week low of $64.55 and a 52-week high of $92.45. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $67.78 and its 200-day simple moving average is $73.59. The company has a quick ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 1.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10.

A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The industrial products company reported $0.85 earnings per share (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%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that A. O. Smith Co. will post 3.76 earnings per share for the current year.

A. O. Smith Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 31st were given a dividend of $0.34 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 31st. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.01%. A. O. Smith’s payout ratio is currently 37.47%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AOS has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Oppenheimer cut their target price on A. O. Smith from $88.00 to $84.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price objective on A. O. Smith from $90.00 to $84.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. UBS Group lowered their target price on shares of A. O. Smith from $80.00 to $74.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Citigroup lowered 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. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of A. O. Smith in a report on Friday, March 7th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $80.86.

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.