A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS) Given New $61.00 Price Target at The Goldman Sachs Group

A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS) had its price target cut by The Goldman Sachs Group from $69.00 to $61.00 in a research report sent to investors on Monday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a sell rating on the industrial products company’s stock.

AOS has been the subject of a number of other reports. Robert W. Baird set a $77.00 price objective on A. O. Smith in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Jefferies Financial Group set a $75.00 price objective on A. O. Smith and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 9th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $85.00 price objective on A. O. Smith and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Wall Street Zen cut A. O. Smith from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 14th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of A. O. Smith in a research note on Wednesday, December 24th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $75.67.

A. O. Smith Trading Up 1.9%

AOS stock opened at $67.14 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.94, a current ratio of 1.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. A. O. Smith has a twelve month low of $61.35 and a twelve month high of $81.86. The business has a fifty day moving average of $71.49 and a 200-day moving average of $69.60. The company has a market cap of $9.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.39, a PEG ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 1.35.

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

A. O. Smith Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 17th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 30th were paid a $0.36 dividend. This represents a $1.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 30th. A. O. Smith’s payout ratio is presently 37.31%.

Insider Transactions at A. O. Smith

In other A. O. Smith news, SVP Darrell W. Schuh sold 1,104 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $74.39, for a total value of $82,126.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 2,201 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $163,732.39. The trade was a 33.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in AOS. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV grew its stake in A. O. Smith by 3,481.8% in the fourth quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV now owns 394 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 383 shares during the period. Rothschild Investment LLC grew its holdings in shares of A. O. Smith by 3,125.0% during the third quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC now owns 387 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 375 shares in the last quarter. Torren Management LLC bought a new position in shares of A. O. Smith during the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of A. O. Smith during the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. Finally, Root Financial Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of A. O. Smith during the third quarter worth about $33,000. 76.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About A. O. Smith

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.