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

A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS)’s share price hit a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $65.29 and last traded at $65.16, with a volume of 60637 shares. The stock had previously closed at $65.66.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. StockNews.com upgraded A. O. Smith from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Oppenheimer cut their target price on shares of 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. DA Davidson lowered A. O. Smith from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $80.00 target price for the company. in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of A. O. Smith in a research note on Saturday. Finally, Citigroup cut their target price on A. O. Smith from $78.00 to $73.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 13th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, A. O. Smith currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $80.86.

A. O. Smith Trading Down 0.3 %

The company has a current ratio of 1.55, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $70.38 and a 200 day moving average price of $76.89. The company has a market cap of $9.49 billion, a PE ratio of 18.07, a PEG ratio of 1.49 and a beta of 1.17.

A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The industrial products company reported $0.85 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.90 by ($0.05). A. O. Smith had a net margin of 13.98% and a return on equity of 28.87%. Sell-side analysts predict that A. O. Smith Co. will post 3.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

A. O. Smith Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Investors of record on Friday, January 31st will be paid a dividend of $0.34 per share. This represents a $1.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.08%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 31st. A. O. Smith’s payout ratio is presently 37.47%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On A. O. Smith

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Waldron Private Wealth LLC purchased a new position in A. O. Smith in the third quarter worth $32,000. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC purchased a new position in A. O. Smith during the third quarter worth approximately $37,000. Brooklyn Investment Group acquired a new position in shares of A. O. Smith during the 3rd quarter worth about $43,000. Truvestments Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of A. O. Smith during the third quarter worth $55,000. Finally, Huntington National Bank boosted its position in shares of A. O. Smith by 19.8% during the 3rd quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 812 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $73,000 after acquiring an additional 134 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 76.10% of the company’s stock.

About A. O. Smith

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.