A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS) Shares Purchased by UniSuper Management Pty Ltd

UniSuper Management Pty Ltd lifted its position in shares of A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS) by 20.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 24,809 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 4,160 shares during the quarter. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd’s holdings in A. O. Smith were worth $1,692,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Ridgewood Investments LLC acquired a new position in A. O. Smith in the 4th quarter valued at $60,000. Signaturefd LLC boosted its stake in A. O. Smith by 40.0% in the 4th quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 1,299 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $89,000 after buying an additional 371 shares during the last quarter. Kieckhefer Group LLC purchased a new stake in A. O. Smith in the 4th quarter valued at about $123,000. Mutual Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of A. O. Smith during the 4th quarter valued at about $209,000. Finally, Stevens Capital Management LP purchased a new position in A. O. Smith during the fourth quarter worth approximately $214,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.10% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have issued reports on AOS. UBS Group lowered their price target on A. O. Smith from $80.00 to $74.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Citigroup decreased their target price on A. O. Smith from $78.00 to $73.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 13th. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price target on shares of A. O. Smith from $90.00 to $84.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. StockNews.com upgraded shares of A. O. Smith from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Oppenheimer cut their price objective 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. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, A. O. Smith currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $80.86.

Insider Activity at A. O. Smith

In related news, VP Robert J. Heideman sold 1,026 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on 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 directly owns 8,889 shares in the company, valued at $583,562.85. This represents a 10.35 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Douglas Samuel Karge sold 419 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.65, for a total value of $27,507.35. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 2,749 shares in the company, valued at $180,471.85. The trade was a 13.23 % 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.

A. O. Smith Stock Down 2.0 %

NYSE:AOS opened at $65.59 on Monday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $67.29 and a 200 day simple moving average of $72.92. A. O. Smith Co. has a one year low of $64.55 and a one year high of $92.45. The company has a market capitalization of $9.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 1.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a current ratio of 1.55.

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

A. O. Smith Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 31st were issued a $0.34 dividend. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.07%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 31st. A. O. Smith’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 37.47%.

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.