Fox Run Management L.L.C. Decreases Stake in A. O. Smith Corporation $AOS

Fox Run Management L.L.C. lessened its holdings in A. O. Smith Corporation (NYSE:AOS) by 75.4% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 7,044 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 21,534 shares during the period. Fox Run Management L.L.C.’s holdings in A. O. Smith were worth $517,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Rothschild Investment LLC boosted its position in A. O. Smith by 3,125.0% in the third quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC now owns 387 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 375 shares during the last quarter. True Wealth Design LLC increased its position in shares of A. O. Smith by 44,400.0% during the 2nd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 445 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 444 shares during the last quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P bought a new stake in shares of A. O. Smith during the 2nd quarter worth $30,000. Evelyn Partners Investment Management LLP boosted its holdings in shares of A. O. Smith by 988.9% in the 2nd quarter. Evelyn Partners Investment Management LLP now owns 490 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 445 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Root Financial Partners LLC bought a new position in A. O. Smith during the third quarter valued at about $33,000. 76.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, SVP Darrell W. Schuh sold 356 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $79.89, for a total transaction of $28,440.84. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 3,295 shares in the company, valued at $263,237.55. The trade was a 9.75% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.76% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

A. O. Smith Stock Performance

NYSE:AOS opened at $77.92 on Friday. The business’s fifty day moving average is $73.30 and its 200 day moving average is $70.77. The firm has a market cap of $10.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.19, a PEG ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a current ratio of 1.50. A. O. Smith Corporation has a 52-week low of $58.83 and a 52-week high of $81.86.

A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The industrial products company reported $0.90 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.84 by $0.06. A. O. Smith had a return on equity of 29.51% and a net margin of 14.26%.The business had revenue of $912.50 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $928.97 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.85 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up .0% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that A. O. Smith Corporation will post 3.76 EPS for the current year.

A. O. Smith Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 17th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 30th were paid a $0.36 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 30th. This represents a $1.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.8%. A. O. Smith’s dividend payout ratio is currently 37.31%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have commented on AOS. Robert W. Baird set a $77.00 price objective on shares of A. O. Smith in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of A. O. Smith from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, February 14th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $85.00 price objective on A. O. Smith and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 30th. DA Davidson reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $75.00 target price on shares of A. O. Smith in a research report on Thursday, November 13th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group set a $69.00 price target on A. O. Smith and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $77.00.

A. O. Smith Company Profile

A. O. Smith Corporation, based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, is a leading manufacturer of water heating and water treatment products for residential and commercial applications. Since its founding in 1874, the company has built a reputation for producing reliable, energy-efficient water heaters, boilers and pressure vessels. Its product portfolio encompasses gas, electric, condensing and tankless water heaters, as well as specialty boilers designed to meet a variety of building and industrial needs.

The company operates through two primary segments: North America and Asia.