SG Americas Securities LLC Acquires 252,683 Shares of A. O. Smith Corporation $AOS

SG Americas Securities LLC raised its holdings in shares of A. O. Smith Corporation (NYSE:AOS) by 3,725.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 259,466 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 252,683 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC owned approximately 0.19% of A. O. Smith worth $17,353,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in AOS. Rothschild Investment LLC raised its holdings 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 purchasing an additional 375 shares during the period. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P bought a new stake in shares of A. O. Smith in the 2nd quarter valued at $30,000. Root Financial Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of A. O. Smith in the 3rd quarter valued at $33,000. Larson Financial Group LLC raised its stake in A. O. Smith by 67.9% during the 3rd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 487 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 197 shares during the period. Finally, Quent Capital LLC bought a new position in A. O. Smith during the third quarter worth about $37,000. 76.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have issued reports on AOS shares. Jefferies Financial Group set a $75.00 target price on A. O. Smith and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 9th. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $69.00 price target on A. O. Smith and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $85.00 price objective on A. O. Smith and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Citigroup reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $78.00 target price (up from $72.00) on shares of A. O. Smith in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $77.00 target price on shares of A. O. Smith in a report on Friday, January 30th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $77.00.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Darrell W. Schuh sold 1,104 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $74.39, for a total value 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. This represents a 33.40% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.50% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

A. O. Smith Stock Performance

Shares of A. O. Smith stock opened at $64.37 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a current ratio of 1.50 and a quick ratio of 0.94. The firm has a market cap of $8.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.36 and a beta of 1.33. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $72.97 and its 200-day moving average is $70.20. A. O. Smith Corporation has a one year low of $58.83 and a one year high of $81.86.

A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 29th. The industrial products company reported $0.90 EPS for the quarter, topping 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 analyst estimates of $928.97 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.85 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up .0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that A. O. Smith Corporation will post 3.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

A. O. Smith Announces Dividend

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

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.