A. O. Smith Corporation $AOS Shares Sold by Rafferty Asset Management LLC

Rafferty Asset Management LLC reduced its stake in shares of A. O. Smith Corporation (NYSE:AOS) by 20.8% in the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 8,819 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 2,310 shares during the quarter. Rafferty Asset Management LLC’s holdings in A. O. Smith were worth $576,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. National Pension Service raised its position in shares of A. O. Smith by 74.8% during the 1st quarter. National Pension Service now owns 458 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 196 shares during the last quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC raised its holdings in A. O. Smith by 69.9% in the 1st quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC now owns 491 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 202 shares during the last quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd raised its holdings in A. O. Smith by 161.7% in the 1st quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 539 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 333 shares during the last quarter. Summit Securities Group LLC acquired a new position in A. O. Smith in the 1st quarter valued at $64,000. Finally, Intact Investment Management Inc. acquired a new position in A. O. Smith in the 1st quarter valued at $72,000. 76.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

A. O. Smith Stock Down 1.3%

Shares of NYSE AOS opened at $70.38 on Wednesday. A. O. Smith Corporation has a 52-week low of $58.83 and a 52-week high of $92.06. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $70.26 and a 200-day moving average of $67.31. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.86 billion, a PE ratio of 19.60, a P/E/G ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 1.25. The company has a quick ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15.

A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 24th. The industrial products company reported $1.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.97 by $0.10. A. O. Smith had a net margin of 13.68% and a return on equity of 28.42%. The company had revenue of $1.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $997.89 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.06 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 1.3% compared to the same quarter last year. A. O. Smith has set its FY 2025 guidance at 3.700-3.900 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that A. O. Smith Corporation will post 3.76 EPS for the current year.

A. O. Smith Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, July 31st were given a dividend of $0.34 per share. This represents a $1.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, July 31st. A. O. Smith’s dividend payout ratio is 37.88%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Chairman Kevin J. Wheeler sold 22,200 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.26, for a total transaction of $1,581,972.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman directly owned 100,647 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,172,105.22. This represents a 18.07% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.76% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have weighed in on the company. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on A. O. Smith from $78.00 to $81.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, July 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. assumed coverage on A. O. Smith in a report on Tuesday, June 24th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $70.00 price target for the company. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on A. O. Smith from $76.00 to $82.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, July 25th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of A. O. Smith from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 22nd. Finally, Oppenheimer boosted their price objective on shares of A. O. Smith from $82.00 to $88.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, July 28th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, A. O. Smith currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $77.43.

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.