International Assets Investment Management LLC Makes New Investment in A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS)

International Assets Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund bought 32,069 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,644,000.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of AOS. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in shares of A. O. Smith by 2.6% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 8,804,868 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $427,740,000 after acquiring an additional 225,462 shares during the last quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc boosted its holdings in shares of A. O. Smith by 2.2% in the 3rd quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc now owns 4,101,386 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $271,225,000 after acquiring an additional 88,025 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of A. O. Smith by 4.6% in the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 3,038,837 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $200,958,000 after acquiring an additional 133,339 shares during the last quarter. Robeco Schweiz AG boosted its holdings in shares of A. O. Smith by 16.8% in the 1st quarter. Robeco Schweiz AG now owns 2,296,046 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $146,694,000 after acquiring an additional 329,539 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Macquarie Group Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of A. O. Smith by 20.5% in the 1st quarter. Macquarie Group Ltd. now owns 2,120,008 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $146,599,000 after acquiring an additional 360,409 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.10% of the company’s stock.

A. O. Smith Price Performance

Shares of NYSE AOS opened at $86.69 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $85.11 and a 200-day simple moving average of $79.05. The stock has a market capitalization of $12.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 1.25. The company has a quick ratio of 1.06, a current ratio of 1.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. A. O. Smith Co. has a 52 week low of $63.88 and a 52 week high of $89.96.

A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, January 30th. The industrial products company reported $0.97 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.96 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $988.10 million during 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 company’s quarterly revenue was up 5.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.86 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that A. O. Smith Co. will post 4.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

A. O. Smith Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed 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. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.48%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 29th. A. O. Smith’s dividend payout ratio is currently 34.59%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

Insider Activity at A. O. Smith

In related news, Director Idelle K. Wolf sold 814 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.00, for a total value of $65,120.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 46,140 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,691,200. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other A. O. Smith news, VP Robert J. Heideman sold 9,890 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $84.63, for a total transaction of $836,990.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 9,455 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $800,176.65. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Idelle K. Wolf sold 814 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 directly owns 46,140 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,691,200. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 95,631 shares of company stock valued at $8,042,535. 2.70% of the stock is owned by company 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.