A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS) Shares Sold by Mn Services Vermogensbeheer B.V.

Mn Services Vermogensbeheer B.V. cut its position in shares of A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS) by 3.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 57,300 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 2,200 shares during the quarter. Mn Services Vermogensbeheer B.V.’s holdings in A. O. Smith were worth $4,724,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Artemis Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of A. O. Smith in the 3rd quarter worth about $37,000. FinTrust Capital Advisors LLC boosted its stake in A. O. Smith by 628.0% in the third quarter. FinTrust Capital Advisors LLC now owns 597 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 515 shares during the period. Addison Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of A. O. Smith by 36.1% during the third quarter. Addison Advisors LLC now owns 712 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 189 shares during the last quarter. Private Trust Co. NA raised its position in shares of A. O. Smith by 393.1% during the 3rd quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 858 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $57,000 after purchasing an additional 684 shares during the period. Finally, UniSuper Management Pty Ltd acquired a new position in A. O. Smith during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $66,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.10% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on A. O. Smith from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, April 12th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of A. O. Smith from $82.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, April 8th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on shares of A. O. Smith from $74.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 19th. Finally, StockNews.com cut A. O. Smith from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, A. O. Smith has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $86.67.

A. O. Smith Stock Up 0.3 %

A. O. Smith stock opened at $85.38 on Wednesday. A. O. Smith Co. has a 52 week low of $63.88 and a 52 week high of $89.96. The stock has a market cap of $12.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.08, a PEG ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.25. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $84.84 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $78.95. The company has a current ratio of 1.59, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06.

A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 30th. The industrial products company reported $0.97 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.96 by $0.01. A. O. Smith had a net margin of 14.45% and a return on equity of 31.05%. The business had revenue of $988.10 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $985.89 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.86 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts expect that A. O. Smith Co. will post 4.1 EPS for the current fiscal year.

A. O. Smith Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 30th will be paid a $0.32 dividend. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.50%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 29th. A. O. Smith’s dividend payout ratio is presently 34.59%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Idelle K. Wolf sold 814 shares of A. O. Smith stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.00, for a total transaction of $65,120.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 46,140 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,691,200. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other A. O. Smith news, VP Robert J. Heideman sold 9,890 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $84.63, for a total value of $836,990.70. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 9,455 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $800,176.65. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Idelle K. Wolf sold 814 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.00, for a total value of $65,120.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 46,140 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,691,200. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 95,631 shares of company stock worth $8,042,535 over the last 90 days. 2.70% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.