Stifel Nicolaus Issues Positive Forecast for A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS) Stock Price

A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOSFree Report) had its price objective hoisted by Stifel Nicolaus from $78.00 to $81.00 in a research report released on Monday,Benzinga reports. Stifel Nicolaus currently has a buy rating on the industrial products company’s stock.

A number of other equities research analysts have also commented on the stock. Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on shares of A. O. Smith from $75.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of A. O. Smith in a research note on Saturday, July 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. started coverage on A. O. Smith in a report on Tuesday, June 24th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $70.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Citigroup cut their price objective on shares of A. O. Smith from $69.00 to $65.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 14th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, A. O. Smith has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $75.71.

Get Our Latest Analysis on AOS

A. O. Smith Stock Down 1.8%

Shares of NYSE:AOS opened at $69.06 on Monday. A. O. Smith has a 12 month low of $58.83 and a 12 month high of $92.06. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $66.62 and a 200 day moving average price of $66.63. The company has a current ratio of 1.61, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. The company has a market cap of $9.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.29, a PEG ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 1.20.

A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOSGet Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The industrial products company reported $0.95 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.90 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $963.90 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $950.56 million. A. O. Smith had a return on equity of 28.39% and a net margin of 13.74%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.00 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that A. O. Smith will post 3.76 earnings per share for the current year.

A. O. Smith Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, July 31st will be issued a $0.34 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 31st. This represents a $1.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.97%. A. O. Smith’s payout ratio is 37.99%.

Institutional Trading of A. O. Smith

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in A. O. Smith during the fourth quarter valued at $7,015,000. Signaturefd LLC grew its position 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 worth $89,000 after buying an additional 371 shares during the last quarter. Virtu Financial LLC boosted its stake in A. O. Smith by 288.4% during the fourth quarter. Virtu Financial LLC now owns 17,747 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,211,000 after buying an additional 13,178 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of A. O. Smith by 16.6% in the 4th quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 122,726 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $8,371,000 after buying an additional 17,442 shares during the period. Finally, KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS purchased a new stake in shares of A. O. Smith during the fourth quarter worth $2,578,000. 76.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About A. O. Smith

(Get Free Report)

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.

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Analyst Recommendations for A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS)

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