A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS) Stake Increased by Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC

Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC raised its stake in shares of A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS) by 192.8% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 90,221 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 59,408 shares during the quarter. Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC’s holdings in A. O. Smith were worth $6,154,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AOS. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new stake in shares of A. O. Smith in the 3rd quarter valued at about $1,726,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in A. O. Smith by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,231,084 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $83,972,000 after buying an additional 12,305 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in A. O. Smith by 1.5% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,586,905 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $321,348,000 after buying an additional 52,593 shares during the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. lifted its holdings in A. O. Smith by 7.1% during the 4th quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 27,825 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,898,000 after buying an additional 1,834 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Private Advisor Group LLC grew its position in shares of A. O. Smith by 124.5% in the 4th quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 6,694 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $457,000 after acquiring an additional 3,712 shares in the last quarter. 76.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

A. O. Smith Trading Up 0.3 %

Shares of AOS stock opened at $65.58 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.44 billion, a PE 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 Co. has a 1 year low of $64.55 and a 1 year high of $92.45. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $67.02 and a two-hundred day moving average of $72.71.

A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS) last announced 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 net margin of 13.98% and a return on equity of 28.87%. As a group, research analysts expect that A. O. Smith Co. will post 3.76 EPS for the current year.

A. O. Smith Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Investors 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.07%. A. O. Smith’s dividend payout ratio is presently 37.47%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on AOS shares. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of A. O. Smith in a research note on Saturday, March 22nd. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price target on shares of A. O. Smith from $90.00 to $84.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company 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. 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 research note 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 on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, A. O. Smith has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $80.86.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, VP Robert J. Heideman sold 1,026 shares of A. O. Smith stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the vice president now owns 8,889 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $583,562.85. The trade was a 10.35 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 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 transaction 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. 0.76% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

A. O. Smith 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.