Boston Partners Buys New Stake in A. O. Smith Corporation $AOS

Key Points

• Boston Partners has acquired a new position in A. O. Smith Corporation, buying 99,507 shares valued at approximately $6.07 million, representing 0.07% of the company's stock.
• Chairman Kevin J. Wheeler sold 22,200 shares for approximately $1.58 million, reducing his ownership by 18.07% to 100,647 shares.
• A. O. Smith recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.34 per share, representing a yield of 1.9% with a payout ratio of 37.88%.

Boston Partners acquired a new position in shares of A. O. Smith Corporation (NYSE:AOS - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 99,507 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $6,073,000. Boston Partners owned approximately 0.07% of A. O. Smith at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd increased its stake in shares of A. O. Smith by 161.7% during the 1st quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 539 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 333 shares in the last quarter. National Pension Service increased its stake in shares of A. O. Smith by 74.8% during the 1st quarter. National Pension Service now owns 458 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 196 shares in the last quarter. Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its stake in shares of A. O. Smith by 14.2% during the 1st quarter. Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 64,168 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $4,202,000 after purchasing an additional 7,996 shares in the last quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of A. O. Smith by 8.2% during the 1st quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 13,227 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $865,000 after purchasing an additional 1,006 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Trajan Wealth LLC boosted its position in A. O. Smith by 7.7% during the first quarter. Trajan Wealth LLC now owns 3,668 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $240,000 after acquiring an additional 263 shares during the last quarter. 76.10% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

A. O. Smith Trading Up 2.7%

Shares of AOS traded up $1.9140 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $73.6640. The company had a trading volume of 186,109 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,534,851. The stock has a market cap of $10.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 1.22. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $68.92 and a 200-day simple moving average of $66.95. A. O. Smith Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $58.83 and a fifty-two week high of $92.06. The company has a current ratio of 1.65, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15.

A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 24th. The industrial products company reported $1.07 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.97 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $1.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $997.89 million. A. O. Smith had a net margin of 13.68% and a return on equity of 28.42%. A. O. Smith's revenue for the quarter was down 1.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.06 EPS. A. O. Smith has set its FY 2025 guidance at 3.700-3.900 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that A. O. Smith Corporation will post 3.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

A. O. Smith Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 31st were issued a $0.34 dividend. This represents a $1.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 31st. A. O. Smith's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 37.88%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AOS has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Robert W. Baird raised their target price on shares of A. O. Smith from $76.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, July 25th. UBS Group restated a "neutral" rating and set a $76.00 target price (up previously from $74.00) on shares of A. O. Smith in a research report on Monday, July 28th. Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of A. O. Smith in a research report on Thursday, August 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. initiated coverage on shares of A. O. Smith in a research report on Tuesday, June 24th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $70.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on shares of A. O. Smith from $78.00 to $81.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, July 21st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, A. O. Smith presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $77.43.

Insider Buying and Selling at A. O. Smith

In other A. O. Smith news, Chairman Kevin J. Wheeler sold 22,200 shares of A. O. Smith stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.26, for a total value of $1,581,972.00. Following the transaction, the chairman owned 100,647 shares in the company, valued at $7,172,105.22. This trade represents a 18.07% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 0.76% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.