A. O. Smith (AOS) Competitors

Applied Industrial Technologies (NYSE:AIT) and A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS) are both industrials companies, but which is the better business? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their profitability, institutional ownership, valuation, risk, analyst recommendations, media sentiment, earnings and dividends.

Which has more risk and volatility, AIT or AOS?

Applied Industrial Technologies has a beta of 1, suggesting that its stock price has a similar volatility profile to the S&P 500.Comparatively, A. O. Smith has a beta of 1.25, suggesting that its stock price is 25% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Is AIT or AOS more profitable?

A. O. Smith has a net margin of 13.68% compared to Applied Industrial Technologies' net margin of 8.61%. A. O. Smith's return on equity of 28.42% beat Applied Industrial Technologies' return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Applied Industrial Technologies	8.61%	21.78%	12.74%
A. O. Smith	13.68%	28.42%	16.52%

Does the media prefer AIT or AOS?

In the previous week, Applied Industrial Technologies had 16 more articles in the media than A. O. Smith. MarketBeat recorded 29 mentions for Applied Industrial Technologies and 13 mentions for A. O. Smith. A. O. Smith's average media sentiment score of 1.47 beat Applied Industrial Technologies' score of 0.58 indicating that A. O. Smith is being referred to more favorably in the news media.

Company	Very Positive	Positive	Neutral	Negative	Very Negative	Overall Sentiment
Applied Industrial Technologies	13 Very Positive mention(s)	1 Positive mention(s)	2 Neutral mention(s)	1 Negative mention(s)	1 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive
A. O. Smith	11 Very Positive mention(s)	0 Positive mention(s)	2 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive

Which has stronger valuation & earnings, AIT or AOS?

A. O. Smith has lower revenue, but higher earnings than Applied Industrial Technologies. A. O. Smith is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Applied Industrial Technologies, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Company	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Applied Industrial Technologies	$4.56B	2.23	$392.99M	$10.12	26.65
A. O. Smith	$3.82B	2.73	$533.60M	$3.59	20.72

Is AIT or AOS a better dividend stock?

Applied Industrial Technologies pays an annual dividend of $1.84 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.7%. A. O. Smith pays an annual dividend of $1.36 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.8%. Applied Industrial Technologies pays out 18.2% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. A. O. Smith pays out 37.9% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years. Applied Industrial Technologies has raised its dividend for 16 consecutive years and A. O. Smith has raised its dividend for 31 consecutive years. A. O. Smith is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Do insiders & institutionals have more ownership in AIT or AOS?

93.5% of Applied Industrial Technologies shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 76.1% of A. O. Smith shares are held by institutional investors. 1.7% of Applied Industrial Technologies shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 0.8% of A. O. Smith shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Do analysts prefer AIT or AOS?

Applied Industrial Technologies presently has a consensus target price of $285.00, indicating a potential upside of 5.66%. A. O. Smith has a consensus target price of $77.43, indicating a potential upside of 4.10%. Given Applied Industrial Technologies' stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, research analysts plainly believe Applied Industrial Technologies is more favorable than A. O. Smith.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Applied Industrial Technologies	0 Sell rating(s)	1 Hold rating(s)	6 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.86
A. O. Smith	0 Sell rating(s)	5 Hold rating(s)	2 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.29

Summary

Applied Industrial Technologies beats A. O. Smith on 10 of the 19 factors compared between the two stocks.