Janney Montgomery Scott LLC Reduces Position in A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS)

Janney Montgomery Scott LLC reduced its holdings in shares of A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS) by 1.0% in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 164,931 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 1,588 shares during the period. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC owned about 0.11% of A. O. Smith worth $14,816,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of AOS. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. grew its stake in A. O. Smith by 7.2% in the 2nd quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 2,007 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $164,000 after acquiring an additional 134 shares in the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. grew its stake in A. O. Smith by 12.5% in the third quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 1,227 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $110,000 after purchasing an additional 136 shares in the last quarter. Algebris UK Ltd increased its holdings in A. O. Smith by 2.3% during the 1st quarter. Algebris UK Ltd now owns 6,109 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $506,000 after purchasing an additional 140 shares during the period. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC raised its position in A. O. Smith by 5.0% during the 3rd quarter. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC now owns 2,989 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $269,000 after purchasing an additional 142 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Empirical Finance LLC lifted its holdings in shares of A. O. Smith by 3.3% in the 1st quarter. Empirical Finance LLC now owns 4,618 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $413,000 after buying an additional 149 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.10% of the company’s stock.

A. O. Smith Stock Performance

Shares of AOS opened at $76.18 on Thursday. 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 firm has a market cap of $11.05 billion, a PE ratio of 19.98, a P/E/G ratio of 1.99 and a beta of 1.17. A. O. Smith Co. has a 12 month low of $70.30 and a 12 month high of $92.44. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $81.67 and a 200-day moving average price of $82.82.

A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The industrial products company reported $0.82 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.82. A. O. Smith had a return on equity of 30.09% and a net margin of 14.41%. The business had revenue of $957.80 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $960.36 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.90 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that A. O. Smith Co. will post 3.78 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

A. O. Smith Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, October 31st will be paid a dividend of $0.34 per share. This is a positive change from A. O. Smith’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 31st. This represents a $1.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.79%. A. O. Smith’s dividend payout ratio is presently 35.79%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AOS has been the topic of several research reports. Robert W. Baird cut their price target on A. O. Smith from $82.00 to $81.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. StockNews.com downgraded shares of A. O. Smith from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, October 26th. UBS Group raised shares of A. O. Smith from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and upped their price target 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 price objective for the company. in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lowered their target price on A. O. Smith from $92.00 to $91.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, A. O. Smith currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $86.71.

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.