Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky Reduces Stake in A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS)

Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky lowered its stake in shares of A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS) by 10.3% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 9,105 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 1,049 shares during the quarter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky’s holdings in A. O. Smith were worth $818,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Legacy Capital Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in A. O. Smith during the second quarter valued at $228,000. Bank of Montreal Can lifted its position in shares of A. O. Smith by 37.6% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 185,768 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $15,409,000 after buying an additional 50,798 shares during the last quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of A. O. Smith during the 2nd quarter worth $1,372,000. FORA Capital LLC purchased a new stake in A. O. Smith in the 3rd quarter worth about $730,000. Finally, WealthPlan Investment Management LLC raised its stake in A. O. Smith by 89.3% in the 3rd quarter. WealthPlan Investment Management LLC now owns 36,206 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $3,252,000 after acquiring an additional 17,079 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 76.10% of the company’s stock.

A. O. Smith Trading Down 2.7 %

Shares of AOS stock opened at $68.91 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $9.99 billion, a PE ratio of 18.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 1.16. A. O. Smith Co. has a 52-week low of $68.89 and a 52-week high of $92.44. The business’s fifty day moving average is $75.18 and its 200 day moving average is $80.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.67.

A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The industrial products company reported $0.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.82. A. O. Smith had a return on equity of 30.09% and a net margin of 14.41%. The firm had revenue of $957.80 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $960.36 million. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.90 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that A. O. Smith Co. will post 3.77 EPS for the current fiscal year.

A. O. Smith Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, October 31st were paid a $0.34 dividend. This represents a $1.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.97%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, October 31st. This is a boost from A. O. Smith’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. A. O. Smith’s payout ratio is currently 35.79%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. UBS Group upgraded shares of A. O. Smith from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $75.00 to $80.00 in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price objective on shares of A. O. Smith from $91.00 to $90.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. DA Davidson cut shares of A. O. Smith from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $80.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Robert W. Baird reduced their price target on A. O. Smith from $82.00 to $81.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Citigroup dropped their price objective on A. O. Smith from $85.00 to $78.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, December 9th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $83.17.

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.