A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS) Earns Hold (C) Rating from Weiss Ratings

Weiss Ratings restated their hold (c) rating on shares of A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS) in a report issued on Friday,Weiss Ratings reports.

Several other equities analysts also recently weighed in on the company. StockNews.com upgraded A. O. Smith from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price target on A. O. Smith from $90.00 to $84.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. Oppenheimer cut their price target on A. O. Smith from $88.00 to $84.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. Citigroup cut their price target 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. Finally, UBS Group cut their price target on A. O. Smith from $80.00 to $74.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, A. O. Smith has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $80.86.

A. O. Smith Stock Performance

NYSE AOS opened at $69.45 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $10.00 billion, a PE ratio of 19.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 1.18. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $67.95 and its 200-day simple moving average is $74.37. A. O. Smith has a 1-year low of $64.55 and a 1-year high of $92.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a current ratio of 1.55 and a quick ratio of 0.96.

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

A. O. Smith Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 31st were paid a dividend of $0.34 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 31st. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.96%. A. O. Smith’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 37.47%.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Douglas Samuel Karge sold 419 shares of A. O. Smith stock in a transaction 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 completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 2,749 shares in the company, valued at approximately $180,471.85. This trade represents a 13.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, VP Robert J. Heideman sold 1,026 shares of A. O. Smith stock in a transaction on 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 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.76% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new stake in A. O. Smith during the 3rd quarter worth about $43,000. Truvestments Capital LLC acquired a new position in A. O. Smith in the 3rd quarter valued at about $55,000. Ridgewood Investments LLC acquired a new position in A. O. Smith in the 4th quarter valued at about $60,000. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC acquired a new position in A. O. Smith during the 4th quarter worth approximately $66,000. Finally, Huntington National Bank increased its position in A. O. Smith by 19.8% during the 3rd quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 812 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $73,000 after purchasing an additional 134 shares during the period. 76.10% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.