A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS) PT Lowered to $90.00 at Robert W. Baird

A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS) had its price target cut by Robert W. Baird from $92.00 to $90.00 in a research note published on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. They currently have a neutral rating on the industrial products company’s stock.

Several other research firms have also commented on AOS. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of A. O. Smith from $73.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a sell rating in a research note on Monday, July 8th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of A. O. Smith from $82.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research note on Monday, April 8th. Oppenheimer restated a market perform rating on shares of A. O. Smith in a research note on Thursday, April 18th. Stifel Nicolaus upgraded shares of A. O. Smith from a hold rating to a buy rating and upped their price target for the company from $97.00 to $98.00 in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on shares of A. O. Smith from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a hold rating in a research note on Friday, April 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $89.29.

A. O. Smith Price Performance

Shares of AOS opened at $84.50 on Wednesday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $83.59 and a 200-day moving average price of $83.85. A. O. Smith has a fifty-two week low of $64.14 and a fifty-two week high of $92.44. The stock has a market capitalization of $12.39 billion, a PE ratio of 21.89, a PEG ratio of 2.25 and a beta of 1.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a current ratio of 1.70.

A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 23rd. The industrial products company reported $1.06 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.07 by ($0.01). A. O. Smith had a return on equity of 31.04% and a net margin of 14.67%. The business had revenue of $1.02 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.01 EPS. A. O. Smith’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.6% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that A. O. Smith will post 4.07 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

A. O. Smith Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 15th. Investors of record on Wednesday, July 31st will be issued a dividend of $0.32 per share. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.51%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, July 31st. A. O. Smith’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 33.16%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On A. O. Smith

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its holdings in A. O. Smith by 157.2% during the second quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 463 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 283 shares in the last quarter. ORG Partners LLC lifted its holdings in A. O. Smith by 665.0% during the first quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 612 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $55,000 after purchasing an additional 532 shares in the last quarter. Twin Tree Management LP lifted its holdings in A. O. Smith by 188.9% during the first quarter. Twin Tree Management LP now owns 737 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $66,000 after purchasing an additional 1,566 shares in the last quarter. Addison Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in A. O. Smith by 28.7% during the fourth quarter. Addison Advisors LLC now owns 916 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $76,000 after purchasing an additional 204 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Signaturefd LLC raised its position in shares of A. O. Smith by 25.5% in the fourth quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 961 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $79,000 after buying an additional 195 shares during the last quarter. 76.10% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

A. O. Smith Company Profile

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.