AAON (NASDAQ:AAON) Shares Gap Up – Still a Buy?

Shares of AAON, Inc. (NASDAQ:AAON) gapped up prior to trading on Wednesday. The stock had previously closed at $75.83, but opened at $78.68. AAON shares last traded at $76.0920, with a volume of 31,649 shares.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently weighed in on AAON. Robert W. Baird cut their price target on shares of AAON from $150.00 to $135.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. KeyCorp restated a “sector weight” rating on shares of AAON in a report on Thursday, August 13th. Zacks Research cut shares of AAON from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. DA Davidson started coverage on shares of AAON in a research report on Tuesday, September 15th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $110.00 target price for the company. Finally, Oppenheimer reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $115.00 target price (down from $125.00) on shares of AAON in a research note on Wednesday, October 14th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $120.00.

AAON Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 3.01 and a quick ratio of 2.01. The firm has a market cap of $6.21 billion, a PE ratio of 39.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 1.41. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $78.92 and a 200 day simple moving average of $97.77.

AAON (NASDAQ:AAON) last released its earnings results on Monday, August 10th. The construction company reported $0.69 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.51 by $0.18. AAON had a net margin of 8.24% and a return on equity of 17.32%. The firm had revenue of $626.98 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $508.82 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.22 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 101.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts expect that AAON, Inc. will post 2.35 EPS for the current year.

AAON Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 25th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 4th were issued a dividend of $0.10 per share. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 4th. AAON’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 20.83%.

Insider Activity at AAON

In related news, Director David Stewart purchased 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 15th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $74.66 per share, with a total value of $74,660.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 4,000 shares in the company, valued at $298,640. This trade represents a 33.33% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Matthew Shaub purchased 457 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 28th. The stock was bought at an average price of $76.42 per share, for a total transaction of $34,923.94. Following the purchase, the executive vice president directly owned 3,136 shares in the company, valued at $239,653.12. The trade was a 17.06% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. 18.09% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On AAON

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Integrity Alliance LLC. bought a new position in AAON in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $1,006,000. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund increased its holdings in shares of AAON by 1.8% in the 3rd quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 14,302 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,184,000 after purchasing an additional 254 shares in the last quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of AAON by 78.3% in the 3rd quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC now owns 6,840 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $566,000 after purchasing an additional 3,004 shares in the last quarter. Yousif Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of AAON by 2.3% in the third quarter. Yousif Capital Management LLC now owns 19,413 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,607,000 after purchasing an additional 442 shares during the last quarter. Finally, SBI Securities Co. Ltd. raised its stake in shares of AAON by 363.1% in the third quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 477 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 374 shares during the last quarter. 70.81% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About AAON

AAON, Inc designs and manufactures high-performance heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) equipment for commercial and industrial applications. Its product portfolio includes rooftop units, air-handling units, condensing units, chillers, geothermal heat pumps and related HVAC controls.

The company’s systems are used in applications such as office buildings, schools, healthcare facilities, retail properties, manufacturing plants and other commercial structures. AAON emphasizes configurable equipment, energy efficiency and integrated controls designed to support indoor comfort and air quality.

AAON was founded in 1988 by Norman H.