Franklin Resources Inc. Sells 2,241 Shares of A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS)

Franklin Resources Inc. cut its holdings in shares of A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS) by 5.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 40,963 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 2,241 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc.’s holdings in A. O. Smith were worth $2,794,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Ridgewood Investments LLC bought a new stake in shares of A. O. Smith in the 4th quarter valued at about $60,000. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of A. O. Smith during the fourth quarter worth $66,000. Signaturefd LLC grew its holdings in shares of A. O. Smith by 40.0% in the 4th quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 1,299 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $89,000 after buying an additional 371 shares during the period. Kieckhefer Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of A. O. Smith in the 4th quarter valued at $123,000. Finally, Mutual Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in A. O. Smith during the 4th quarter worth $209,000. 76.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AOS has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Citigroup dropped their price target 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. StockNews.com raised shares of A. O. Smith from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. UBS Group lowered their price objective on shares of A. O. Smith from $80.00 to $74.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of A. O. Smith in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, Oppenheimer cut 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. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $79.33.

Insider Activity at A. O. Smith

In other news, VP Robert J. Heideman sold 1,026 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.65, for a total transaction of $67,356.90. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 8,889 shares in the company, valued at approximately $583,562.85. This trade represents a 10.35 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Douglas Samuel Karge sold 419 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.65, for a total transaction of $27,507.35. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 2,749 shares in the company, valued at approximately $180,471.85. This trade represents a 13.23 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.76% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

A. O. Smith Trading Up 2.5 %

A. O. Smith stock opened at $64.46 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a current ratio of 1.55 and a quick ratio of 0.96. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $65.70 and a 200-day moving average of $71.39. The company has a market cap of $9.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.76, a P/E/G ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 1.26. A. O. Smith Co. has a one year low of $58.83 and a one year high of $92.45.

A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS) last issued its 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 net margin of 13.98% and a return on equity of 28.87%. On average, equities analysts expect that A. O. Smith Co. will post 3.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

A. O. Smith Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 30th will be paid a $0.34 dividend. This represents a $1.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.11%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 30th. A. O. Smith’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 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.