Toronto Dominion Bank Buys 4,469 Shares of A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS)

Toronto Dominion Bank grew its stake in A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS - Free Report) by 7.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 63,845 shares of the industrial products company's stock after buying an additional 4,469 shares during the period. Toronto Dominion Bank's holdings in A. O. Smith were worth $4,355,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in AOS. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of A. O. Smith during the fourth quarter worth approximately $66,000. Canada Post Corp Registered Pension Plan bought a new position in A. O. Smith in the 4th quarter worth $84,000. Signaturefd LLC raised its stake in A. O. Smith by 40.0% in the fourth quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 1,299 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $89,000 after buying an additional 371 shares in the last quarter. Mufg Securities Americas Inc. purchased a new position in shares of A. O. Smith during the 4th quarter worth approximately $120,000. Finally, Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new position in A. O. Smith in the fourth quarter worth $201,000. Institutional investors own 76.10% of the company's stock.

A. O. Smith Stock Performance

NYSE AOS traded down $3.09 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $65.49. 828,806 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,176,591. The company has a current ratio of 1.55, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10. A. O. Smith Co. has a 52 week low of $58.83 and a 52 week high of $92.45. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.03, a P/E/G ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 1.28. The business's fifty day moving average price is $65.87 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $68.20.

A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The industrial products company reported $0.95 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.90 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $963.90 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $950.56 million. A. O. Smith had a return on equity of 28.87% and a net margin of 13.98%. A. O. Smith's quarterly revenue was down 1.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.00 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that A. O. Smith Co. will post 3.76 EPS for the current year.

A. O. Smith Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 15th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 30th were issued a $0.34 dividend. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.08%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, April 30th. A. O. Smith's dividend payout ratio is 37.99%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on AOS shares. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of A. O. Smith in a research note on Saturday. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on A. O. Smith from $75.00 to $76.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Wall Street Zen upgraded A. O. Smith from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. UBS Group dropped their price objective on A. O. Smith from $80.00 to $74.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Citigroup decreased their target price on 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. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $76.17.

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.