Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P. Invests $13.29 Million in A. O. Smith Corporation $AOS

Key Points

• Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P. acquired 203,377 shares of A. O. Smith Corporation, valued at approximately $13.3 million, representing 0.14% ownership of the company.
• Brokerages have updated their target prices for A. O. Smith, with Oppenheimer raising theirs from $82 to $88 and UBS increasing theirs to $76, reflecting a generally positive outlook.
• A. O. Smith declared a quarterly dividend of $0.34 per share, with a total annualized dividend yield of 1.9%, and reported earnings that beat analysts' expectations for the latest quarter.

Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P. purchased a new stake in shares of A. O. Smith Corporation (NYSE:AOS - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 203,377 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $13,293,000. Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P. owned approximately 0.14% of A. O. Smith at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Impax Asset Management Group plc raised its position in shares of A. O. Smith by 67.3% in the first quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc now owns 5,188,561 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $339,124,000 after purchasing an additional 2,086,433 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. grew its stake in A. O. Smith by 998.6% during the first quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,348,247 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $88,121,000 after acquiring an additional 1,225,521 shares in the last quarter. Sarasin & Partners LLP purchased a new position in A. O. Smith in the 1st quarter worth approximately $74,180,000. Voloridge Investment Management LLC grew its stake in A. O. Smith by 242.8% in the 4th quarter. Voloridge Investment Management LLC now owns 627,282 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $42,787,000 after buying an additional 444,307 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its stake in A. O. Smith by 35.6% in the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,670,567 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $109,187,000 after buying an additional 438,291 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 76.10% of the company's stock.

A. O. Smith Trading Down 1.3%

NYSE AOS traded down $0.9440 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $71.8760. The company had a trading volume of 847,705 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,548,667. 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 Corporation has a one year low of $58.83 and a one year high of $92.06. The company has a market cap of $10.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.22. The company's fifty day moving average is $68.64 and its 200-day moving average is $66.89.

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

A. O. Smith Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 31st were issued a $0.34 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 31st. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.9%. A. O. Smith's dividend payout ratio is 37.88%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other A. O. Smith news, Chairman Kevin J. Wheeler sold 22,200 shares of the company's 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 completion of the transaction, the chairman directly owned 100,647 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,172,105.22. This represents a 18.07% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.76% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Oppenheimer boosted their price objective on shares of A. O. Smith from $82.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, July 28th. Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of A. O. Smith in a report on Thursday, August 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. assumed coverage on shares of A. O. Smith in a report on Tuesday, June 24th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $70.00 price objective for the company. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on shares of A. O. Smith from $78.00 to $81.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, July 21st. Finally, Robert W. Baird upped their price target on shares of A. O. Smith from $76.00 to $82.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, July 25th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $77.43.

About A. O. Smith

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.