A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS) Given New $74.00 Price Target at Citigroup

A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS) had its price target trimmed by Citigroup from $78.00 to $74.00 in a research report sent to investors on Monday morning,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a neutral rating on the industrial products company’s stock.

A number of other analysts have also recently commented on AOS. Jefferies Financial Group set a $75.00 price target on A. O. Smith and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 9th. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $69.00 price target on A. O. Smith and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $85.00 price target on A. O. Smith and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Robert W. Baird set a $77.00 price target on A. O. Smith in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of A. O. Smith in a research note on Wednesday, December 24th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $75.67.

A. O. Smith Stock Performance

A. O. Smith stock opened at $67.14 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 1.50, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. A. O. Smith has a 1 year low of $61.35 and a 1 year high of $81.86. The company has a market cap of $9.28 billion, a PE ratio of 17.39, a PEG ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 1.35. The company’s 50-day moving average is $71.49 and its two-hundred day moving average is $69.60.

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

A. O. Smith Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 30th will be issued a $0.36 dividend. This represents a $1.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 30th. A. O. Smith’s dividend payout ratio is presently 37.31%.

Insider Activity at A. O. Smith

In other news, SVP Darrell W. Schuh sold 1,104 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 sale, the senior vice president owned 2,201 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $163,732.39. This represents a 33.40% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On A. O. Smith

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in AOS. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of A. O. Smith by 19.6% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 939,302 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $61,393,000 after buying an additional 154,201 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of A. O. Smith by 78.0% during the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 963 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $63,000 after buying an additional 422 shares in the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP acquired a new stake in shares of A. O. Smith during the second quarter worth $5,212,000. California Public Employees Retirement System lifted its holdings in shares of A. O. Smith by 11.4% during the second quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 211,176 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $13,847,000 after buying an additional 21,657 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of Nova Scotia lifted its holdings in shares of A. O. Smith by 165.3% during the second quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 32,874 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,156,000 after buying an additional 20,485 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.10% of the company’s stock.

A. O. Smith Company 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.