Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank Trims Stock Holdings in A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS)

Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank cut its stake in shares of A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS) by 50.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 115,682 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 118,372 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank’s holdings in A. O. Smith were worth $7,891,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of AOS. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new position in shares of A. O. Smith during the third quarter worth about $1,726,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of A. O. Smith by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,231,084 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $83,972,000 after acquiring an additional 12,305 shares during the last quarter. FORA Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of A. O. Smith in the third quarter worth approximately $730,000. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of A. O. Smith by 1.5% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,586,905 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $321,348,000 after acquiring an additional 52,593 shares during the period. Finally, Assetmark Inc. increased its holdings in A. O. Smith by 7.1% during the 4th quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 27,825 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,898,000 after purchasing an additional 1,834 shares during the period. 76.10% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at A. O. Smith

In related news, VP Robert J. Heideman sold 1,026 shares of the 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 owns 8,889 shares in the company, valued at approximately $583,562.85. This represents a 10.35 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Douglas Samuel Karge sold 419 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 $27,507.35. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 2,749 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $180,471.85. The trade was a 13.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.76% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently commented on AOS. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their target price on shares of A. O. Smith from $90.00 to $84.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. UBS Group lowered their price objective on A. O. Smith from $80.00 to $74.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. StockNews.com upgraded shares of A. O. Smith from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Oppenheimer lowered their price target on A. O. Smith from $88.00 to $84.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Citigroup cut their target price on shares of A. O. Smith from $78.00 to $73.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, A. O. Smith has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $80.86.

A. O. Smith Stock Down 0.4 %

NYSE AOS opened at $65.35 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $67.91 and its 200-day moving average price is $74.12. The company has a market capitalization of $9.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 1.18. A. O. Smith Co. has a 52 week low of $64.55 and a 52 week high of $92.44. The company has a quick ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 1.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10.

A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The industrial products company reported $0.85 earnings per share (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, equities research analysts predict that A. O. Smith Co. will post 3.76 earnings per share for the current year.

A. O. Smith Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed 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 2.08%. A. O. Smith’s payout ratio is 37.47%.

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.