A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS) Shares Purchased by Welch & Forbes LLC

Welch & Forbes LLC raised its holdings in A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS) by 0.3% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 550,150 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,913 shares during the quarter. Welch & Forbes LLC’s holdings in A. O. Smith were worth $45,354,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Addison Advisors LLC increased its position in A. O. Smith by 36.1% during the third quarter. Addison Advisors LLC now owns 712 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $47,000 after buying an additional 189 shares in the last quarter. Covestor Ltd grew its stake in shares of A. O. Smith by 39.2% during the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 1,203 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $79,000 after buying an additional 339 shares during the period. Signaturefd LLC increased its holdings in shares of A. O. Smith by 25.5% during the 4th quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 961 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $79,000 after buying an additional 195 shares during the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC increased its stake in A. O. Smith by 52.4% during the fourth quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 1,506 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $122,000 after acquiring an additional 518 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Desjardins Global Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of A. O. Smith by 31.4% in the 4th quarter. Desjardins Global Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,597 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $132,000 after purchasing an additional 382 shares during the period. 76.10% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

A. O. Smith Stock Up 1.0 %

Shares of A. O. Smith stock traded up $0.84 on Monday, hitting $85.15. 541,379 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 986,026. A. O. Smith Co. has a 52-week low of $63.88 and a 52-week high of $89.96. The company has a quick ratio of 1.06, a current ratio of 1.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. The stock has a market cap of $12.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.06, a PEG ratio of 2.30 and a beta of 1.27. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $86.03 and its 200 day moving average is $80.44.

A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The industrial products company reported $1.00 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.99 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $978.80 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $995.91 million. A. O. Smith had a net margin of 14.94% and a return on equity of 30.94%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.94 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that A. O. Smith Co. will post 4.07 earnings per share for the current year.

A. O. Smith Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 30th will be paid a dividend of $0.32 per share. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.50%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 29th. A. O. Smith’s payout ratio is currently 33.16%.

Insider Transactions at A. O. Smith

In related news, Director Idelle K. Wolf sold 814 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.00, for a total transaction of $65,120.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 46,140 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,691,200. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, Director Idelle K. Wolf sold 814 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.00, for a total transaction of $65,120.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 46,140 shares in the company, valued at $3,691,200. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Ajita G. Rajendra sold 24,669 shares of A. O. Smith stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $83.02, for a total value of $2,048,020.38. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 56,951 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,728,072.02. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 95,631 shares of company stock worth $8,042,535. 2.70% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AOS has been the topic of several research reports. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price target on shares of A. O. Smith from $91.00 to $90.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 26th. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of A. O. Smith from $82.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, April 8th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on A. O. Smith from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, April 12th. Oppenheimer reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of A. O. Smith in a report on Thursday, April 18th. Finally, Robert W. Baird upped their price target on A. O. Smith from $86.00 to $92.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, April 26th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $90.67.

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.