CenterBook Partners LP Buys New Holdings in A. O. Smith Corporation $AOS

CenterBook Partners LP purchased a new position in A. O. Smith Corporation (NYSE:AOS) during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 16,112 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,183,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of AOS. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of A. O. Smith in the second quarter worth $91,939,000. American Century Companies Inc. grew its position in A. O. Smith by 54.3% during the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 2,080,288 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $136,405,000 after purchasing an additional 732,041 shares during the period. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd raised its stake in shares of A. O. Smith by 655.5% during the 2nd quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 710,716 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $46,602,000 after buying an additional 616,638 shares during the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company lifted its holdings in shares of A. O. Smith by 521.1% in the 2nd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 581,070 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $38,101,000 after buying an additional 487,513 shares during the period. Finally, Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of A. O. Smith by 171.6% in the 2nd quarter. Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC now owns 667,655 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $43,778,000 after buying an additional 421,845 shares during the period. 76.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at A. O. Smith

In other news, SVP Darrell W. Schuh sold 356 shares of A. O. Smith stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $79.89, for a total value of $28,440.84. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 3,295 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $263,237.55. The trade was a 9.75% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.76% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of A. O. Smith in a research report on Wednesday, December 24th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $85.00 target price on shares of A. O. Smith and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 30th. Citigroup reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $78.00 price target (up from $72.00) on shares of A. O. Smith in a report on Friday, January 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $69.00 price objective on shares of A. O. Smith and gave the company a “sell” rating in a report on Thursday, February 12th. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $77.00 price objective on shares of A. O. Smith in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $77.00.

A. O. Smith Price Performance

Shares of NYSE AOS opened at $77.79 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a current ratio of 1.50. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $72.41 and a 200 day moving average of $70.54. The firm has a market cap of $10.83 billion, a PE ratio of 20.15, a PEG ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 1.36. A. O. Smith Corporation has a one year low of $58.83 and a one year high of $81.86.

A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The industrial products company reported $0.90 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.84 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $912.50 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $928.97 million. A. O. Smith had a net margin of 14.26% and a return on equity of 29.51%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up .0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.85 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict that A. O. Smith Corporation will post 3.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

A. O. Smith Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 17th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 30th were issued a dividend of $0.36 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 30th. This represents a $1.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.9%. A. O. Smith’s dividend payout ratio is presently 37.31%.

A. O. Smith Profile

A. O. Smith Corporation, based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, is a leading manufacturer of water heating and water treatment products for residential and commercial applications. Since its founding in 1874, the company has built a reputation for producing reliable, energy-efficient water heaters, boilers and pressure vessels. Its product portfolio encompasses gas, electric, condensing and tankless water heaters, as well as specialty boilers designed to meet a variety of building and industrial needs.

The company operates through two primary segments: North America and Asia.