Teacher Retirement System of Texas Acquires New Position in A. O. Smith Corporation (NYSE:AOS)

Teacher Retirement System of Texas acquired a new position in A. O. Smith Corporation (NYSE:AOS - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 17,538 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $1,146,000.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC boosted its holdings in A. O. Smith by 3.3% in the first quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 5,532 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $363,000 after purchasing an additional 177 shares during the last quarter. RMR Wealth Builders raised its holdings in A. O. Smith by 4.5% in the 1st quarter. RMR Wealth Builders now owns 4,898 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $320,000 after acquiring an additional 209 shares during the last quarter. Private Trust Co. NA raised its holdings in A. O. Smith by 22.1% in the 1st quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 1,181 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $77,000 after acquiring an additional 214 shares during the last quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue raised its holdings in A. O. Smith by 1.8% in the 1st quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 13,831 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $903,000 after acquiring an additional 250 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cetera Investment Advisers increased its holdings in shares of A. O. Smith by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 27,307 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,863,000 after buying an additional 315 shares during the last quarter. 76.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

A. O. Smith Trading Up 1.4%

Shares of A. O. Smith stock traded up $0.96 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $69.01. The company had a trading volume of 181,508 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,299,816. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $66.53 and a 200 day moving average price of $66.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 1.61 and a quick ratio of 1.01. The firm has a market cap of $9.81 billion, a PE ratio of 19.43, a P/E/G ratio of 1.49 and a beta of 1.20. A. O. Smith Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $58.83 and a fifty-two week high of $92.45.

A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The industrial products company reported $0.95 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 company had revenue of $963.90 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $950.56 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.00 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 1.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts anticipate that A. O. Smith Corporation will post 3.76 earnings per share for the current year.

A. O. Smith Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, July 31st will be issued a $0.34 dividend. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.97%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 31st. A. O. Smith's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 37.99%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AOS has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of A. O. Smith in a report on Saturday, July 12th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on shares of A. O. Smith from $75.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Citigroup decreased their price objective on shares of A. O. Smith from $69.00 to $65.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. started coverage on shares of A. O. Smith in a research report on Tuesday, June 24th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $70.00 price target for the company. Finally, Robert W. Baird increased their price objective 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. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, A. O. Smith has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $75.29.

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.