B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG Buys 4,400 Shares of A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS)

B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG lifted its stake in A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS) by 23.5% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 23,145 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 4,400 shares during the period. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG’s holdings in A. O. Smith were worth $1,579,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. FMR LLC grew its holdings in shares of A. O. Smith by 180.2% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 125,384 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $11,263,000 after purchasing an additional 80,632 shares in the last quarter. Glenmede Trust Co. NA lifted its position in A. O. Smith by 4.3% in the third quarter. Glenmede Trust Co. NA now owns 3,992 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $359,000 after purchasing an additional 163 shares during the period. Public Sector Pension Investment Board increased its holdings in A. O. Smith by 10.8% in the 3rd quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 5,149 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $463,000 after buying an additional 500 shares during the period. Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC raised its stake in shares of A. O. Smith by 17.4% in the 3rd quarter. Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC now owns 106,763 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $9,591,000 after buying an additional 15,824 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC lifted its holdings in shares of A. O. Smith by 72.8% during the 3rd quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 14,003 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,258,000 after acquiring an additional 5,900 shares during the period. 76.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Douglas Samuel Karge sold 419 shares of the 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 directly owns 2,749 shares in the company, valued at $180,471.85. This represents a 13.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP Robert J. Heideman sold 1,026 shares of A. O. Smith stock in a transaction on Friday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.65, for a total transaction of $67,356.90. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 8,889 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $583,562.85. This represents a 10.35 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.76% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

A. O. Smith Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:AOS opened at $66.21 on Thursday. The business has a fifty day moving average of $66.92 and a 200-day moving average of $72.67. The firm has a market cap of $9.53 billion, a PE ratio of 18.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 1.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a current ratio of 1.55. A. O. Smith Co. has a twelve month low of $64.24 and a twelve month high of $92.45.

A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The industrial products company reported $0.85 earnings per share 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%. On average, equities research 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 announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 31st were given a dividend of $0.34 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 31st. This represents a $1.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.05%. A. O. Smith’s payout ratio is currently 37.47%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AOS has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of A. O. Smith in a research note on Saturday, March 22nd. StockNews.com raised A. O. Smith from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Citigroup decreased their price target on A. O. Smith from $78.00 to $73.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on A. O. Smith from $90.00 to $84.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Oppenheimer cut their price objective on A. O. Smith from $88.00 to $84.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $80.86.

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.