ORG Partners LLC Trims Stake in A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS)

ORG Partners LLC lessened its holdings in A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS) by 72.6% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,205 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 5,840 shares during the period. ORG Partners LLC’s holdings in A. O. Smith were worth $198,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of AOS. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its position in A. O. Smith by 11.3% in the first quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 225,930 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $20,212,000 after buying an additional 22,859 shares during the last quarter. Legacy Capital Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of A. O. Smith in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $228,000. Cetera Investment Advisers boosted its position in shares of A. O. Smith by 222.0% during the 1st quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 25,255 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,259,000 after purchasing an additional 17,411 shares during the period. Intech Investment Management LLC raised its position in A. O. Smith by 84.8% in the first quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 51,518 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $4,609,000 after purchasing an additional 23,640 shares during the period. Finally, Tidal Investments LLC raised its position in A. O. Smith by 119.8% in the first quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 21,400 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,914,000 after purchasing an additional 11,663 shares during the period. 76.10% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently commented on AOS shares. StockNews.com upgraded A. O. Smith from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. UBS Group lifted their target price on A. O. Smith from $73.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research report on Monday, July 8th. Robert W. Baird reduced 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 research report on Wednesday, July 24th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised shares of A. O. Smith from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $97.00 to $98.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $89.67.

Insider Buying and Selling at A. O. Smith

In other news, SVP Samuel M. Carver sold 14,705 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 2,399 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $194,319. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 2.70% of the stock is owned by insiders.

A. O. Smith Stock Performance

Shares of AOS opened at $80.97 on Wednesday. A. O. Smith Co. has a 1 year low of $65.08 and a 1 year high of $92.44. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.81 billion, a PE ratio of 20.87, a PEG ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 1.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a current ratio of 1.70. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $82.74 and a 200-day simple moving average of $83.85.

A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 23rd. The industrial products company reported $1.06 earnings per share (EPS) 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 firm had revenue of $1.02 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.01 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts predict that A. O. Smith Co. will post 4.07 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

A. O. Smith Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, October 31st will be issued a $0.34 dividend. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.68%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, October 31st. This is a positive change from A. O. Smith’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. A. O. Smith’s dividend payout ratio is 32.99%.

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.