Raymond James & Associates Decreases Position in A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS)

Raymond James & Associates decreased its position in A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS) by 2.8% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 165,045 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 4,682 shares during the period. Raymond James & Associates’ holdings in A. O. Smith were worth $13,497,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. International Assets Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of A. O. Smith during the 4th quarter worth $2,644,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC boosted its position in A. O. Smith by 5.5% during the fourth quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 7,446 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $614,000 after purchasing an additional 385 shares during the period. Cerity Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of A. O. Smith in the fourth quarter worth about $412,000. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System bought a new stake in shares of A. O. Smith in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $610,000. Finally, abrdn plc lifted its stake in shares of A. O. Smith by 5.7% during the 4th quarter. abrdn plc now owns 28,552 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,354,000 after buying an additional 1,530 shares in the last quarter. 76.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Robert W. Baird lowered their target price on shares of A. O. Smith from $92.00 to $90.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 24th. UBS Group boosted their price objective on A. O. Smith from $73.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research note on Monday, July 8th. Stifel Nicolaus upgraded A. O. Smith from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $97.00 to $98.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. Finally, StockNews.com raised A. O. Smith from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $89.67.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Samuel M. Carver sold 14,705 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $81.00, for a total value of $1,191,105.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 2,399 shares in the company, valued at $194,319. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 2.70% of the company’s stock.

A. O. Smith Price Performance

NYSE:AOS opened at $82.54 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $12.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.38, a P/E/G ratio of 2.18 and a beta of 1.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a current ratio of 1.70. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $82.98 and a 200 day moving average of $83.94. A. O. Smith Co. has a 52-week low of $64.14 and a 52-week high of $92.44.

A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 23rd. The industrial products company reported $1.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.07 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $1.02 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1 billion. A. O. Smith had a net margin of 14.67% and a return on equity of 31.04%. The business’s revenue was up 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.01 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that A. O. Smith Co. will post 4.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

A. O. Smith Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 31st were issued a $0.32 dividend. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.55%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, July 31st. A. O. Smith’s payout ratio is 33.16%.

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.