A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS) Hits New 12-Month Low – Here’s Why

A. O. Smith Corporation (NYSE:AOS) shares hit a new 52-week low on Tuesday . The stock traded as low as $58.18 and last traded at $57.89, with a volume of 32396 shares. The stock had previously closed at $58.52.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AOS has been the topic of a number of research reports. DA Davidson set a $67.00 price objective on shares of A. O. Smith and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, May 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of A. O. Smith from $75.00 to $65.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Stifel Nicolaus set a $75.00 price target on shares of A. O. Smith in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Zacks Research cut A. O. Smith from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price target on A. O. Smith from $69.00 to $61.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 13th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $70.44.

A. O. Smith Price Performance

The company has a current ratio of 1.56, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $65.91 and a 200 day moving average price of $68.60. The company has a market capitalization of $7.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.30, a P/E/G ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 1.23.

A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $0.85 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.94 by ($0.09). A. O. Smith had a net margin of 13.84% and a return on equity of 28.42%. The business had revenue of $945.60 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $974.06 million. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.95 EPS. The firm’s revenue was down 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. A. O. Smith has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.600-3.900 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that A. O. Smith Corporation will post 3.78 EPS for the current fiscal year.

A. O. Smith Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 30th will be given a $0.36 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 30th. This represents a $1.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.5%. A. O. Smith’s dividend payout ratio is presently 38.30%.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Darrell W. Schuh sold 1,104 shares of A. O. Smith stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $74.39, for a total transaction of $82,126.56. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 2,201 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $163,732.39. The trade was a 33.40% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On A. O. Smith

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its holdings in shares of A. O. Smith by 26.4% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 665,793 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $48,876,000 after buying an additional 139,117 shares in the last quarter. Earnest Partners LLC grew its position in A. O. Smith by 1.8% during the third quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 2,082,982 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $152,912,000 after buying an additional 36,122 shares in the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP grew its position in A. O. Smith by 4.6% during the third quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 2,508,947 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $184,182,000 after buying an additional 109,654 shares in the last quarter. Alps Advisors Inc. increased its position in shares of A. O. Smith by 19.9% in the third quarter. Alps Advisors Inc. now owns 273,216 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $20,057,000 after purchasing an additional 45,299 shares during the period. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its holdings in A. O. Smith by 2.1% in the 3rd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,871,694 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $137,393,000 after buying an additional 38,694 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 76.10% of the company’s stock.

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.