Duality Advisers LP Reduces Position in A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS)

Duality Advisers LP lowered its position in A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS) by 45.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 9,384 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 7,800 shares during the quarter. Duality Advisers LP’s holdings in A. O. Smith were worth $774,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Lecap Asset Management Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of A. O. Smith in the fourth quarter valued at about $1,258,000. Trust Point Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of A. O. Smith in the fourth quarter valued at about $4,047,000. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank grew its holdings in shares of A. O. Smith by 24.3% in the fourth quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 246,964 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $20,360,000 after purchasing an additional 48,325 shares during the period. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. grew its holdings in shares of A. O. Smith by 8.8% in the third quarter. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 37,768 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,498,000 after purchasing an additional 3,065 shares during the period. Finally, FCF Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of A. O. Smith by 138.7% in the fourth quarter. FCF Advisors LLC now owns 22,240 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,833,000 after purchasing an additional 12,923 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.10% of the company’s stock.

A. O. Smith Stock Down 1.0 %

Shares of AOS opened at $87.00 on Thursday. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $85.62 and its 200-day simple moving average is $79.73. The stock has a market capitalization of $12.81 billion, a PE ratio of 23.51, a P/E/G ratio of 2.38 and a beta of 1.25. A. O. Smith Co. has a 1 year low of $63.88 and a 1 year high of $89.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a current ratio of 1.59.

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

A. O. Smith Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 30th will be issued a $0.32 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 29th. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.47%. A. O. Smith’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 34.59%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Oppenheimer reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of A. O. Smith in a report on Thursday, April 18th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on shares of A. O. Smith from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, April 12th. StockNews.com lowered shares of A. O. Smith from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. Citigroup increased their target price on shares of A. O. Smith from $82.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, April 8th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on shares of A. O. Smith from $85.00 to $91.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 17th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $88.50.

Insider Activity at A. O. Smith

In other A. O. Smith news, Director Idelle K. Wolf sold 814 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $3,691,200. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, Director Ajita G. Rajendra sold 60,258 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $84.51, for a total transaction of $5,092,403.58. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 56,951 shares in the company, valued at $4,812,929.01. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Idelle K. Wolf sold 814 shares of the firm’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 transaction, the director now owns 46,140 shares in the company, valued at $3,691,200. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 95,631 shares of company stock valued at $8,042,535 over the last 90 days. 2.70% 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.