JPMorgan Chase & Co. Increases Holdings in A. O. Smith Corporation $AOS

JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its holdings in shares of A. O. Smith Corporation (NYSE:AOS) by 26.4% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 665,793 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 139,117 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co.’s holdings in A. O. Smith were worth $48,876,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AOS. Rothschild Investment LLC raised 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 acquiring an additional 375 shares during the period. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P bought a new position in shares of A. O. Smith during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Evelyn Partners Investment Management LLP increased its stake in shares of A. O. Smith by 988.9% during the 2nd quarter. Evelyn Partners Investment Management LLP now owns 490 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 445 shares during the last quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of A. O. Smith during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of A. O. Smith by 67.9% in the 3rd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 487 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 197 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 76.10% of the company’s stock.

A. O. Smith Stock Performance

NYSE:AOS opened at $64.01 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $8.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.58, a PEG ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 1.33. The company has a quick ratio of 0.94, a current ratio of 1.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $73.57 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $70.44. A. O. Smith Corporation has a twelve month low of $58.83 and a twelve month high of $81.86.

A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS) last announced 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 net margin of 14.26% and a return on equity of 29.51%. The business had revenue of $912.50 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $928.97 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.85 earnings per share. A. O. Smith’s quarterly revenue was up .0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that A. O. Smith Corporation will post 3.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

A. O. Smith Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 17th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 30th were given a dividend of $0.36 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 30th. This represents a $1.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.2%. A. O. Smith’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 37.31%.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Darrell W. Schuh sold 1,104 shares of A. O. Smith stock in a transaction on 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 directly 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 transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.50% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have issued reports on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $69.00 target price on A. O. Smith and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of A. O. Smith from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, February 14th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of A. O. Smith in a research report on Wednesday, December 24th. Citigroup restated a “neutral” rating and set a $78.00 price target (up from $72.00) on shares of A. O. Smith in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus set a $85.00 price objective on shares of A. O. Smith and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $77.00.

A. O. Smith 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.