Stanley Laman Group Ltd. Has $4.04 Million Holdings in A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS)

Stanley Laman Group Ltd. trimmed its position in shares of A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS) by 2.9% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 45,015 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 1,349 shares during the quarter. Stanley Laman Group Ltd.’s holdings in A. O. Smith were worth $4,044,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in AOS. Waldron Private Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of A. O. Smith in the 3rd quarter valued at $32,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC increased its position in A. O. Smith by 648.8% during the third quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 45,330 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $4,072,000 after buying an additional 39,276 shares during the last quarter. Vest Financial LLC raised its holdings in A. O. Smith by 20.9% during the third quarter. Vest Financial LLC now owns 620,212 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $55,714,000 after buying an additional 107,248 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its position in shares of A. O. Smith by 44.7% in the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 7,828 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $640,000 after buying an additional 2,419 shares during the last quarter. Finally, V Square Quantitative Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of A. O. Smith by 17.7% during the 3rd quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 3,607 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $324,000 after acquiring an additional 543 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 76.10% of the company’s stock.

A. O. Smith Stock Down 0.5 %

AOS opened at $78.23 on Wednesday. A. O. Smith Co. has a 1-year low of $65.08 and a 1-year high of $92.44. The business has a 50 day moving average of $82.67 and a 200-day moving average of $83.59. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.16, a P/E/G ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 1.15. The company has a current ratio of 1.70, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07.

A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 23rd. The industrial products company reported $1.06 earnings per share (EPS) 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 company had revenue of $1.02 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.01 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that A. O. Smith Co. will post 3.78 earnings per share for the current year.

A. O. Smith Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, October 31st will be given a dividend of $0.34 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, October 31st. This is an increase from A. O. Smith’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. This represents a $1.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.74%. A. O. Smith’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 32.99%.

Insider Activity at A. O. Smith

In other news, SVP Samuel M. Carver sold 14,705 shares of A. O. Smith stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $81.00, for a total transaction of $1,191,105.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 2,399 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $194,319. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 2.70% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Robert W. Baird cut their price objective on A. O. Smith from $92.00 to $90.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. StockNews.com upgraded A. O. Smith from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 18th. 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. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised shares of A. O. Smith from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $97.00 to $98.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, A. O. Smith presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $89.67.

A. O. Smith 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.