Zacks Research Decreases Earnings Estimates for A. O. Smith

A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS) – Equities researchers at Zacks Research cut their FY2024 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for A. O. Smith in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday, December 11th. Zacks Research analyst R. Department now forecasts that the industrial products company will earn $3.76 per share for the year, down from their previous forecast of $3.78. The consensus estimate for A. O. Smith’s current full-year earnings is $3.77 per share.

A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 22nd. The industrial products company reported $0.82 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.82. A. O. Smith had a net margin of 14.41% and a return on equity of 30.09%. The company had revenue of $957.80 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $960.36 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.90 EPS.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently commented on AOS. StockNews.com cut A. O. Smith from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. UBS Group raised shares of A. O. Smith from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $75.00 to $80.00 in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. DA Davidson downgraded shares of A. O. Smith from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $80.00 target price on the stock. in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Robert W. Baird reduced their price target on shares of A. O. Smith from $82.00 to $81.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price objective on shares of A. O. Smith from $91.00 to $90.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, A. O. Smith has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $83.17.

A. O. Smith Stock Performance

Shares of A. O. Smith stock opened at $70.81 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $10.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.63, a PEG ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a current ratio of 1.67, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $75.55 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $80.42. A. O. Smith has a 1-year low of $70.73 and a 1-year high of $92.44.

A. O. Smith Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 31st were given a dividend of $0.34 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, October 31st. This is an increase from A. O. Smith’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.92%. A. O. Smith’s payout ratio is presently 35.79%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. State Street Corp raised its position in A. O. Smith by 4.0% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 7,721,581 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $693,630,000 after buying an additional 299,766 shares during the last quarter. Select Equity Group L.P. raised its holdings in shares of A. O. Smith by 11.6% in the second quarter. Select Equity Group L.P. now owns 3,852,467 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $315,055,000 after purchasing an additional 400,304 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of A. O. Smith by 1.5% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,586,905 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $321,348,000 after purchasing an additional 52,593 shares in the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in A. O. Smith by 3.9% during the third quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 2,302,659 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $206,848,000 after purchasing an additional 87,458 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Earnest Partners LLC grew its position in A. O. Smith by 3.7% in the 2nd quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 2,046,798 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $167,387,000 after purchasing an additional 72,856 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 76.10% of the company’s stock.

About A. O. Smith

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.