Zacks Research Lowers Earnings Estimates for A. O. Smith

A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS) – Zacks Research lowered their Q4 2024 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for A. O. Smith in a research report issued on Tuesday, November 12th. Zacks Research analyst R. Department now expects that the industrial products company will earn $0.90 per share for the quarter, down from their previous forecast of $1.06. The consensus estimate for A. O. Smith’s current full-year earnings is $3.78 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for A. O. Smith’s Q2 2025 earnings at $1.10 EPS, Q3 2025 earnings at $0.92 EPS, FY2025 earnings at $3.98 EPS and Q3 2026 earnings at $1.05 EPS.

A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The industrial products company reported $0.82 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.82. The company had revenue of $957.80 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $960.36 million. A. O. Smith had a net margin of 14.41% and a return on equity of 30.09%. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.90 earnings per share.

A number of other research analysts also recently commented on the stock. Robert W. Baird lowered their price objective on shares of A. O. Smith from $82.00 to $81.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. StockNews.com raised A. O. Smith from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price target on A. O. Smith from $92.00 to $91.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. UBS Group raised A. O. Smith from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $75.00 to $80.00 in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, DA Davidson lowered shares of A. O. Smith from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $80.00 price objective on the stock. in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, A. O. Smith has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $86.71.

A. O. Smith Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:AOS opened at $73.03 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $10.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.17. The company’s fifty day moving average is $80.68 and its two-hundred day moving average is $82.32. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. A. O. Smith has a 12-month low of $72.62 and a 12-month high of $92.44.

A. O. Smith Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, October 31st will be issued a $0.34 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 31st. This represents a $1.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.86%. This is a positive change from A. O. Smith’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. A. O. Smith’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 35.79%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On A. O. Smith

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Sarasin & Partners LLP bought a new position in shares of A. O. Smith during the 3rd quarter worth about $78,766,000. Select Equity Group L.P. lifted its position in shares of A. O. Smith by 11.6% in the 2nd quarter. Select Equity Group L.P. now owns 3,852,467 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $315,055,000 after acquiring an additional 400,304 shares during the period. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec grew its holdings in shares of A. O. Smith by 92.4% during the 3rd quarter. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec now owns 761,410 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $68,397,000 after purchasing an additional 365,710 shares in the last quarter. Confluence Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of A. O. Smith during the second quarter valued at approximately $22,288,000. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. acquired a new position in shares of A. O. Smith in the third quarter valued at $24,060,000. 76.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.