Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC Acquires 84,693 Shares of AAON, Inc. $AAON

Key Points

• Conestoga Capital Advisors raised its stake in AAON by 5.0%, acquiring 84,693 shares in Q4 to hold 1,776,013 shares (about 2.18% of AAON) valued at roughly $135.4 million, making AAON its 18th-largest holding.
• Several large institutions also materially increased positions—Wellington (+512.5% to ~4.74M shares), Champlain (+96.4% to ~2.32M) and First Trust (+136.4% to ~1.93M)—leaving institutional ownership at about 70.8%.
• Insiders have been net sellers, disposing of 37,118 shares (~$3.67M) in the past 90 days (notably Casey Kidwell and CAO Rebecca Thompson), while analysts maintain a consensus "Moderate Buy" with an average target of $107.75.

Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in AAON, Inc. (NASDAQ:AAON - Free Report) by 5.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,776,013 shares of the construction company's stock after acquiring an additional 84,693 shares during the period. AAON accounts for approximately 2.3% of Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC's holdings, making the stock its 18th biggest holding. Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC owned 2.18% of AAON worth $135,421,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in AAON. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its holdings in shares of AAON by 512.5% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,739,892 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $442,896,000 after acquiring an additional 3,966,088 shares during the last quarter. Champlain Investment Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of AAON by 96.4% in the 3rd quarter. Champlain Investment Partners LLC now owns 2,320,319 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $216,811,000 after acquiring an additional 1,138,658 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP lifted its holdings in shares of AAON by 136.4% in the 3rd quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 1,933,595 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $180,675,000 after acquiring an additional 1,115,566 shares during the last quarter. Bamco Inc. NY bought a new position in shares of AAON in the 3rd quarter valued at about $67,922,000. Finally, Capital World Investors bought a new position in shares of AAON in the 3rd quarter valued at about $49,462,000. Institutional investors own 70.81% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently commented on the stock. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c)" rating on shares of AAON in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. William Blair reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of AAON in a research report on Monday, March 2nd. Wall Street Zen raised shares of AAON from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, February 14th. DA Davidson reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $120.00 price objective on shares of AAON in a research report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Finally, Oppenheimer reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $118.00 price objective (up from $115.00) on shares of AAON in a research report on Tuesday, March 3rd. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $107.75.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Casey Kidwell sold 5,225 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $90.00, for a total transaction of $470,250.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 12,662 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,139,580. This trade represents a 29.21% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CAO Rebecca Thompson sold 21,914 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $100.21, for a total transaction of $2,196,001.94. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 27,681 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,773,913.01. This trade represents a 44.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 37,118 shares of company stock worth $3,665,241. Corporate insiders own 18.09% of the company's stock.

AAON Stock Performance

AAON stock opened at $93.31 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 71.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 1.20. The company's 50-day moving average is $89.90 and its 200 day moving average is $90.86. AAON, Inc. has a 1-year low of $62.00 and a 1-year high of $116.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 2.63 and a quick ratio of 1.84.

AAON (NASDAQ:AAON - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Monday, March 2nd. The construction company reported $0.39 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.45 by ($0.06). The company had revenue of $424.22 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $374.10 million. AAON had a return on equity of 13.13% and a net margin of 7.46%.The business's revenue was up 42.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.30 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that AAON, Inc. will post 2 EPS for the current year.

AAON Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 30th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 18th were given a dividend of $0.10 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 18th. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.4%. AAON's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 30.77%.

About AAON

AAON, Inc NASDAQ: AAON is a U.S.-based designer and manufacturer of heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) equipment for commercial and industrial applications. The company's product portfolio focuses on rooftop packaged units, water-source heat pumps, chillers and custom-engineered solutions that cater to a wide array of building types, from office complexes and schools to data centers and healthcare facilities.

AAON's core offerings include rooftop units available in gas, electric and dual-fuel configurations, precision air-conditioning systems for temperature- and humidity-sensitive environments, and modular chillers suited for both indoor and outdoor installations.

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