Select Equity Group L.P. Sells 2,533,357 Shares of A. O. Smith Corporation $AOS

Key Points

• Select Equity Group L.P. significantly reduced its stake in A. O. Smith Corporation by 75.8%, holding $52.91 million in shares after selling over 2.5 million shares during the first quarter.
• Other institutional investors, including Impax Asset Management and American Century Companies, ramped up their investments in A. O. Smith, with increases of 67.3% and 998.6% respectively.
• A. O. Smith reported earnings of $1.07 per share for its latest quarter, surpassing expectations, but noted a 1.3% year-over-year revenue decline.

Select Equity Group L.P. lessened its position in A. O. Smith Corporation (NYSE:AOS - Free Report) by 75.8% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 809,461 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 2,533,357 shares during the period. Select Equity Group L.P. owned 0.57% of A. O. Smith worth $52,906,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in AOS. Beverly Hills Private Wealth LLC lifted its position in shares of A. O. Smith by 3.1% in the 1st quarter. Beverly Hills Private Wealth LLC now owns 5,847 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $382,000 after purchasing an additional 176 shares during the period. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lifted its position in shares of A. O. Smith by 3.3% in the 1st quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 5,532 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $363,000 after purchasing an additional 177 shares during the period. Vienna Powszechne Towarzystwo Emerytalne S.A. Vienna Insurance Group lifted its position in shares of A. O. Smith by 1.2% in the 1st quarter. Vienna Powszechne Towarzystwo Emerytalne S.A. Vienna Insurance Group now owns 15,607 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,020,000 after purchasing an additional 184 shares during the period. National Pension Service lifted its position in shares of A. O. Smith by 74.8% in 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 during the period. Finally, TCTC Holdings LLC lifted its position in shares of A. O. Smith by 69.9% in the 1st quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC now owns 491 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 202 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 76.10% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at A. O. Smith

In related news, Chairman Kevin J. Wheeler sold 22,200 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.26, for a total value of $1,581,972.00. Following the transaction, the chairman directly owned 100,647 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,172,105.22. This trade represents a 18.07% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 0.76% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently commented on AOS. 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. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on A. O. Smith from $78.00 to $81.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, July 21st. 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. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c)" rating on shares of A. O. Smith in a research note on Saturday, August 30th. Finally, Oppenheimer raised their target price on A. O. Smith from $82.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, July 28th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $77.43.

A. O. Smith Price Performance

NYSE AOS traded down $1.40 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $72.90. The company's stock had a trading volume of 204,328 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,503,092. The company's 50-day moving average is $71.16 and its two-hundred day moving average is $67.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 1.65. A. O. Smith Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $58.83 and a fifty-two week high of $92.06. The stock has a market cap of $10.22 billion, a PE ratio of 20.29, a PEG ratio of 1.58 and a beta of 1.25.

A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 24th. The industrial products company reported $1.07 earnings per share (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 company had revenue of $1.01 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $997.89 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.06 earnings per share. A. O. Smith'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. Analysts forecast that A. O. Smith Corporation will post 3.76 EPS for the current year.

A. O. Smith Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 31st were given a $0.34 dividend. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, July 31st. A. O. Smith's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 37.88%.

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.