3,691 Shares in A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS) Purchased by PUREfi Wealth LLC

PUREfi Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS) during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor acquired 3,691 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $252,000.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. V Square Quantitative Management LLC grew its holdings in A. O. Smith by 13.4% in the fourth quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 4,089 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $279,000 after purchasing an additional 482 shares during the period. Schwartz Investment Counsel Inc. grew its holdings in A. O. Smith by 22.9% in the fourth quarter. Schwartz Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 374,933 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $25,574,000 after purchasing an additional 69,800 shares during the period. Arlington Trust Co LLC grew its holdings in A. O. Smith by 4.2% in the fourth quarter. Arlington Trust Co LLC now owns 8,722 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $595,000 after purchasing an additional 350 shares during the period. Regents Gate Capital LLP acquired a new stake in A. O. Smith in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $9,993,000. Finally, Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC acquired a new stake in A. O. Smith in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,110,000. 76.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

A. O. Smith Stock Performance

Shares of A. O. Smith stock opened at $66.22 on Friday. A. O. Smith Co. has a one year low of $64.55 and a one year high of $92.44. The company has a market cap of $9.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.24, a PEG ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 1.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a current ratio of 1.55. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $69.10 and its 200 day moving average price is $75.99.

A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS) last announced 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 return on equity of 28.87% and a net margin of 13.98%. On average, research analysts predict that A. O. Smith Co. will post 3.77 EPS for the current year.

A. O. Smith Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 31st will be paid a dividend of $0.34 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 31st. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.05%. A. O. Smith’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 37.47%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Robert W. Baird decreased their target price on A. O. Smith from $82.00 to $81.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. DA Davidson downgraded A. O. Smith from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $80.00 target price on the stock. in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Citigroup decreased their target price on A. O. Smith from $78.00 to $73.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of A. O. Smith in a research report on Saturday, February 1st. Finally, Oppenheimer decreased their target price 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. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, A. O. Smith presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $80.86.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other A. O. Smith news, SVP Douglas Samuel Karge sold 419 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.65, for a total transaction of $27,507.35. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 2,749 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $180,471.85. This trade represents a 13.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, VP Robert J. Heideman sold 1,026 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.65, for a total value of $67,356.90. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 8,889 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $583,562.85. This trade represents a 10.35 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.70% of the stock is owned by insiders.

A. O. Smith 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.