Principal Financial Group Inc. Increases Stock Position in A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS)

Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its position in shares of A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS) by 1.6% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 186,247 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,851 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned about 0.13% of A. O. Smith worth $15,231,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of AOS. International Assets Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in A. O. Smith during the 4th quarter valued at about $2,644,000. Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its position in A. O. Smith by 6.7% during the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 17,751 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,463,000 after buying an additional 1,108 shares during the period. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC bought a new stake in A. O. Smith in the 4th quarter worth $281,000. Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its position in shares of A. O. Smith by 19.9% in the fourth quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 100,447 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $8,281,000 after acquiring an additional 16,643 shares during the period. Finally, First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. bought a new position in shares of A. O. Smith during the fourth quarter valued at about $233,000. Institutional investors own 76.10% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at A. O. Smith

In other news, SVP Samuel M. Carver sold 14,705 shares of A. O. Smith stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $81.00, for a total value of $1,191,105.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 2,399 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $194,319. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 2.70% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the company. UBS Group boosted their price target on A. O. Smith from $73.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a report on Monday, July 8th. StockNews.com upgraded A. O. Smith from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 13th. Robert W. Baird cut their price target on shares of A. O. Smith from $92.00 to $90.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 24th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus upgraded 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 analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $89.67.

A. O. Smith Stock Performance

Shares of AOS stock opened at $80.35 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 1.70, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $82.73 and its 200-day moving average price is $84.12. The stock has a market cap of $11.78 billion, a PE ratio of 20.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.29 and a beta of 1.15. A. O. Smith Co. has a 12 month low of $64.14 and a 12 month high of $92.44.

A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 23rd. The industrial products company reported $1.06 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates 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 quarter last year, the company posted $1.01 EPS. A. O. Smith’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts expect that A. O. Smith Co. will post 4.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

A. O. Smith Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 15th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 31st were issued a $0.32 dividend. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.59%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, July 31st. A. O. Smith’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 33.16%.

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.