Robeco Schweiz AG Sells 10,326 Shares of A. O. Smith Corporation (NYSE:AOS)

Robeco Schweiz AG trimmed its stake in shares of A. O. Smith Corporation (NYSE:AOS - Free Report) by 3.2% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 316,637 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 10,326 shares during the quarter. Robeco Schweiz AG owned about 0.22% of A. O. Smith worth $20,695,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of A. O. Smith in the fourth quarter valued at $66,000. Intact Investment Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of A. O. Smith in the first quarter valued at approximately $72,000. Private Trust Co. NA lifted its stake in shares of A. O. Smith by 22.1% during the first quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 1,181 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $77,000 after buying an additional 214 shares during the period. Canada Post Corp Registered Pension Plan acquired a new position in A. O. Smith in the 4th quarter valued at $84,000. Finally, Signaturefd LLC lifted 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. 76.10% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AOS has been the subject of several research reports. Weiss Ratings reissued a "hold (c)" rating on shares of A. O. Smith in a research note on Saturday. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on A. O. Smith from $75.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Robert W. Baird raised their target price on shares of A. O. Smith from $75.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. initiated coverage on shares of A. O. Smith in a research note on Tuesday, June 24th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $70.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Citigroup decreased their target price on shares of A. O. Smith from $69.00 to $65.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 14th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $75.29.

A. O. Smith Stock Performance

Shares of AOS traded down $0.23 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $68.86. The company's stock had a trading volume of 864,643 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,558,277. A. O. Smith Corporation has a one year low of $58.83 and a one year high of $92.44. The stock's 50-day moving average is $66.50 and its two-hundred day moving average is $66.60. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.78 billion, a PE ratio of 19.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a current ratio of 1.61.

A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The industrial products company reported $0.95 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.90 by $0.05. A. O. Smith had a net margin of 13.74% and a return on equity of 28.39%. The firm had revenue of $963.90 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $950.56 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.00 earnings per share. The business's revenue was down 1.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that A. O. Smith Corporation will post 3.76 EPS for the current year.

A. O. Smith Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, July 31st will be given a dividend of $0.34 per share. This represents a $1.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.98%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 31st. A. O. Smith's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 37.99%.

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.