Vontobel Holding Ltd. Has $80.47 Million Holdings in A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS)

Vontobel Holding Ltd. grew its holdings in A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS - Free Report) by 3.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 976,038 shares of the industrial products company's stock after acquiring an additional 29,612 shares during the quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. owned 0.66% of A. O. Smith worth $80,465,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. State Street Corp lifted its position in shares of A. O. Smith by 2.6% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 8,804,868 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $427,740,000 after buying an additional 225,462 shares during the last quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc grew its position in A. O. Smith by 2.2% during the 3rd quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc now owns 4,101,386 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $271,225,000 after acquiring an additional 88,025 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. grew its position in A. O. Smith by 4.6% during the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 3,038,837 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $200,958,000 after acquiring an additional 133,339 shares during the last quarter. Robeco Schweiz AG grew its position in A. O. Smith by 16.8% during the 1st quarter. Robeco Schweiz AG now owns 2,296,046 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $146,694,000 after acquiring an additional 329,539 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Macquarie Group Ltd. lifted its holdings in A. O. Smith by 20.5% during the 1st quarter. Macquarie Group Ltd. now owns 2,120,008 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $146,599,000 after buying an additional 360,409 shares during the period. 76.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

A. O. Smith Stock Performance

AOS traded up $0.35 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $86.50. The stock had a trading volume of 1,178,432 shares, compared to its average volume of 936,909. The stock has a market cap of $12.73 billion, a PE ratio of 23.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 1.25. The company has a quick ratio of 1.06, a current ratio of 1.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $84.54 and its 200 day simple moving average is $78.68. A. O. Smith Co. has a 1 year low of $63.88 and a 1 year high of $89.96.

A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 30th. The industrial products company reported $0.97 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.96 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $988.10 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $985.89 million. A. O. Smith had a return on equity of 31.05% and a net margin of 14.45%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.86 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that A. O. Smith Co. will post 4.07 earnings per share for the current year.

A. O. Smith Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 30th will be paid a $0.32 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 29th. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.48%. A. O. Smith's dividend payout ratio is presently 34.59%.

Insider Activity at A. O. Smith

In other news, VP Robert J. Heideman sold 9,890 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $84.63, for a total transaction of $836,990.70. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 9,455 shares of the company's stock, valued at $800,176.65. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other news, Director Ajita G. Rajendra sold 60,258 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $84.51, for a total transaction of $5,092,403.58. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 56,951 shares in the company, valued at $4,812,929.01. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP Robert J. Heideman sold 9,890 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $84.63, for a total transaction of $836,990.70. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 9,455 shares of the company's stock, valued at $800,176.65. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 95,631 shares of company stock valued at $8,042,535 over the last 90 days. 2.70% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on AOS shares. Citigroup boosted their price objective on A. O. Smith from $82.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, April 8th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on A. O. Smith from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday. StockNews.com lowered shares of A. O. Smith from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on A. O. Smith from $74.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 19th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, A. O. Smith has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $86.67.

A. O. Smith 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.