Seaport Res Ptn Research Analysts Boost Earnings Estimates for A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS)

A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS) – Investment analysts at Seaport Res Ptn raised their Q1 2024 earnings per share estimates for shares of A. O. Smith in a research note issued to investors on Sunday, April 14th. Seaport Res Ptn analyst S. Graham now anticipates that the industrial products company will post earnings of $1.00 per share for the quarter, up from their previous estimate of $0.99. The consensus estimate for A. O. Smith’s current full-year earnings is $4.07 per share. Seaport Res Ptn also issued estimates for A. O. Smith’s Q2 2024 earnings at $1.11 EPS, FY2024 earnings at $4.13 EPS and Q1 2025 earnings at $1.06 EPS.

A number of other equities research analysts have also issued reports on AOS. StockNews.com lowered A. O. Smith from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. Citigroup upped their price target on A. O. Smith from $82.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, April 8th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on A. O. Smith from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, April 12th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on A. O. Smith from $74.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 19th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $86.67.

A. O. Smith Price Performance

AOS stock opened at $85.38 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a current ratio of 1.59 and a quick ratio of 1.06. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $84.84 and a 200-day simple moving average of $78.95. The firm has a market capitalization of $12.57 billion, a PE ratio of 23.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 1.25. A. O. Smith has a 1 year low of $63.88 and a 1 year high of $89.96.

A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 30th. The industrial products company reported $0.97 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.96 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $988.10 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $985.89 million. A. O. Smith had a return on equity of 31.05% and a net margin of 14.45%. The business’s revenue was up 5.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.86 earnings per share.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On A. O. Smith

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in AOS. Atwater Malick LLC lifted its position in shares of A. O. Smith by 1.6% during the 1st quarter. Atwater Malick LLC now owns 109,608 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $9,806,000 after acquiring an additional 1,767 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its stake in A. O. Smith by 17.1% in the 1st quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 31,789 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,844,000 after acquiring an additional 4,636 shares during the period. Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in A. O. Smith by 12.3% in the 1st quarter. Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,994 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $268,000 after acquiring an additional 328 shares during the period. Annex Advisory Services LLC grew its stake in A. O. Smith by 20.8% in the 1st quarter. Annex Advisory Services LLC now owns 205,447 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $18,379,000 after acquiring an additional 35,333 shares during the period. Finally, Gateway Investment Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in A. O. Smith in the 1st quarter worth approximately $215,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.10% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Ajita G. Rajendra sold 24,669 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $83.02, for a total transaction of $2,048,020.38. Following the transaction, the director now owns 56,951 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,728,072.02. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other A. O. Smith news, Director Ajita G. Rajendra sold 60,258 shares of A. O. Smith stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $84.51, for a total value of $5,092,403.58. Following the sale, the director now owns 56,951 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,812,929.01. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Ajita G. Rajendra sold 24,669 shares of A. O. Smith stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $83.02, for a total value of $2,048,020.38. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 56,951 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,728,072.02. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 95,631 shares of company stock valued at $8,042,535. 2.70% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

A. O. Smith Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 30th will be issued a dividend of $0.32 per share. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.50%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 29th. A. O. Smith’s payout ratio is 34.59%.

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.