A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS) Shares Sold by Cresset Asset Management LLC

Cresset Asset Management LLC lessened its holdings in A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS - Free Report) by 15.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 86,649 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 15,875 shares during the quarter. Cresset Asset Management LLC owned 0.06% of A. O. Smith worth $5,910,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AOS. Ridgewood Investments LLC purchased a new stake in shares of A. O. Smith in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $60,000. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in A. O. Smith in the fourth quarter valued at $66,000. Canada Post Corp Registered Pension Plan purchased a new stake in shares of A. O. Smith during the 4th quarter worth $84,000. Signaturefd LLC grew its stake in shares of A. O. Smith by 40.0% during the 4th quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 1,299 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $89,000 after purchasing an additional 371 shares during the period. Finally, Kieckhefer Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of A. O. Smith in the 4th quarter valued at about $123,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.10% of the company's stock.

A. O. Smith Price Performance

A. O. Smith stock traded up $0.25 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $68.26. 728,933 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,150,022. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a current ratio of 1.55 and a quick ratio of 0.96. A. O. Smith Co. has a 12-month low of $58.83 and a 12-month high of $92.45. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $65.52 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $68.79. The company has a market capitalization of $9.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.80, a PEG ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 1.28.

A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The industrial products company reported $0.95 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.90 by $0.05. A. O. Smith had a net margin of 13.98% and a return on equity of 28.87%. The firm had revenue of $963.90 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $950.56 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.00 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 1.5% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that A. O. Smith Co. will post 3.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

A. O. Smith Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 30th will be paid a dividend of $0.34 per share. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.99%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 30th. A. O. Smith's payout ratio is 37.99%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently commented on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on shares of A. O. Smith from $75.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of A. O. Smith in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Citigroup reduced their price objective on A. O. Smith from $69.00 to $65.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 14th. UBS Group lowered their target price on A. O. Smith from $80.00 to $74.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on A. O. Smith from $75.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $76.17.

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.