A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS) Shares Purchased by Railway Pension Investments Ltd

Railway Pension Investments Ltd increased its position in A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS) by 75.2% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 38,200 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 16,400 shares during the period. Railway Pension Investments Ltd’s holdings in A. O. Smith were worth $3,124,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of A. O. Smith by 11.3% in the 1st quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 225,930 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $20,212,000 after purchasing an additional 22,859 shares in the last quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group increased its holdings in shares of A. O. Smith by 37.2% in the fourth quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 623,357 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $51,390,000 after buying an additional 168,911 shares in the last quarter. TD Asset Management Inc lifted its position in shares of A. O. Smith by 39.7% during the 4th quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 79,075 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $6,519,000 after acquiring an additional 22,483 shares during the last quarter. Cim LLC bought a new stake in shares of A. O. Smith during the 4th quarter worth $3,165,000. Finally, Cetera Investment Advisers grew its holdings in shares of A. O. Smith by 222.0% in the 1st quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 25,255 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,259,000 after acquiring an additional 17,411 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 76.10% of the company’s stock.

A. O. Smith Stock Performance

AOS traded down $1.25 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $81.11. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 122,990 shares, compared to its average volume of 939,430. The company has a current ratio of 1.70, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $82.96 and a 200 day simple moving average of $84.06. The stock has a market cap of $11.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.34, a PEG ratio of 2.18 and a beta of 1.15. A. O. Smith Co. has a twelve month low of $64.14 and a twelve month high of $92.44.

A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, July 23rd. The industrial products company reported $1.06 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.07 by ($0.01). A. O. Smith had a net margin of 14.67% and a return on equity of 31.04%. The company had revenue of $1.02 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.01 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.6% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that A. O. Smith Co. will post 4.07 earnings per share for the current year.

A. O. Smith Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 31st were issued a $0.32 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, July 31st. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.58%. A. O. Smith’s payout ratio is presently 33.16%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other A. O. Smith news, SVP Samuel M. Carver sold 14,705 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $81.00, for a total value of $1,191,105.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 2,399 shares in the company, valued at $194,319. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 2.70% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AOS has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. UBS Group lifted their price target on A. O. Smith from $73.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research note on Monday, July 8th. StockNews.com raised A. O. Smith from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 13th. Stifel Nicolaus upgraded A. O. Smith from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the company from $97.00 to $98.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 24th. Finally, Robert W. Baird decreased their price target on shares of A. O. Smith from $92.00 to $90.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $89.67.

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.