Treasurer of the State of North Carolina Lowers Holdings in A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS)

Treasurer of the State of North Carolina trimmed its stake in A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS) by 0.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 52,110 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 400 shares during the quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina’s holdings in A. O. Smith were worth $3,554,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new position in A. O. Smith in the 3rd quarter worth about $1,726,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in A. O. Smith by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,231,084 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $83,972,000 after buying an additional 12,305 shares during the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. lifted its stake in shares of A. O. Smith by 7.1% in the fourth quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 27,825 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,898,000 after buying an additional 1,834 shares in the last quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of A. O. Smith by 124.5% during the fourth quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 6,694 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $457,000 after buying an additional 3,712 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of A. O. Smith during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $7,015,000. 76.10% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently issued reports on AOS. Oppenheimer lowered their price objective on A. O. Smith from $88.00 to $84.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of A. O. Smith in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Citigroup decreased their target price on A. O. Smith from $69.00 to $65.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday. UBS Group dropped their price target on shares of A. O. Smith from $80.00 to $74.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price objective on shares of A. O. Smith from $90.00 to $84.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $78.00.

Insider Activity at A. O. Smith

In other news, VP Robert J. Heideman sold 1,026 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.65, for a total value of $67,356.90. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 8,889 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $583,562.85. This trade represents a 10.35 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Douglas Samuel Karge sold 419 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.65, for a total value of $27,507.35. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 2,749 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $180,471.85. This trade represents a 13.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.76% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

A. O. Smith Trading Down 2.0 %

A. O. Smith stock opened at $63.87 on Wednesday. A. O. Smith Co. has a 52-week low of $58.83 and a 52-week high of $92.45. The company has a market cap of $9.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.60, a P/E/G ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 1.26. The company has a quick ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 1.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $65.65 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $71.04.

A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The industrial products company reported $0.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.90 by ($0.05). A. O. Smith had a net margin of 13.98% and a return on equity of 28.87%. Analysts predict that A. O. Smith Co. will post 3.76 EPS for the current year.

A. O. Smith Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 30th will be issued a $0.34 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 30th. This represents a $1.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.13%. A. O. Smith’s dividend payout ratio is currently 37.47%.

A. O. Smith Company 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.