Earnest Partners LLC Purchases 70,989 Shares of A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS)

Earnest Partners LLC raised its holdings in A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS - Free Report) by 3.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,058,731 shares of the industrial products company's stock after buying an additional 70,989 shares during the period. Earnest Partners LLC owned 1.42% of A. O. Smith worth $140,426,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Ridgewood Investments LLC bought a new stake in A. O. Smith during the fourth quarter worth about $60,000. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of A. O. Smith in the 4th quarter valued at $66,000. Canada Post Corp Registered Pension Plan acquired a new stake in shares of A. O. Smith in the 4th quarter valued at $84,000. Signaturefd LLC boosted its holdings 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 valued at $89,000 after acquiring an additional 371 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Kieckhefer Group LLC acquired a new position in A. O. Smith during the 4th quarter worth about $123,000. Institutional investors own 76.10% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at A. O. Smith

In related news, VP Robert J. Heideman sold 1,026 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.65, for a total value of $67,356.90. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 8,889 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $583,562.85. This trade represents a 10.35 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Douglas Samuel Karge sold 419 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.65, for a total value of $27,507.35. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 2,749 shares in the company, valued at approximately $180,471.85. This represents a 13.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.76% of the company's stock.

A. O. Smith Trading Up 1.5 %

Shares of NYSE:AOS traded up $0.98 on Wednesday, hitting $68.00. The company had a trading volume of 2,030,452 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,133,137. A. O. Smith Co. has a 1 year low of $58.83 and a 1 year high of $92.45. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.73, a P/E/G ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 1.26. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $65.26 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $69.44. The company has a quick ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 1.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10.

A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly 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 company had revenue of $963.90 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $950.56 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.00 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was down 1.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that A. O. Smith Co. will post 3.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

A. O. Smith Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 30th will be paid a dividend of $0.34 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 30th. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.00%. A. O. Smith's dividend payout ratio is 37.47%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the company. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on A. O. Smith from $75.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday. UBS Group lowered their price objective on A. O. Smith from $80.00 to $74.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on shares of A. O. Smith from $75.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday. Oppenheimer decreased their price target on shares of A. O. Smith from $88.00 to $84.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c)" rating on shares of A. O. Smith in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target 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.