Vest Financial LLC Acquires 107,248 Shares of A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS)

Vest Financial LLC lifted its holdings in A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS) by 20.9% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 620,212 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 107,248 shares during the period. A. O. Smith makes up approximately 1.1% of Vest Financial LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 23rd biggest position. Vest Financial LLC’s holdings in A. O. Smith were worth $55,714,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Select Equity Group L.P. grew its stake in shares of A. O. Smith by 11.6% in the 2nd quarter. Select Equity Group L.P. now owns 3,852,467 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $315,055,000 after buying an additional 400,304 shares during the period. Earnest Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of A. O. Smith by 3.7% in the 2nd quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 2,046,798 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $167,387,000 after buying an additional 72,856 shares during the period. Sei Investments Co. grew its stake in shares of A. O. Smith by 5.0% in the 2nd quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 1,393,519 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $113,962,000 after buying an additional 66,933 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its stake in shares of A. O. Smith by 1.7% in the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,194,731 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $97,708,000 after buying an additional 19,890 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its stake in shares of A. O. Smith by 2.6% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,075,913 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $87,988,000 after buying an additional 26,794 shares during the period. 76.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

A. O. Smith Price Performance

Shares of NYSE AOS remained flat at $78.75 during midday trading on Friday. The stock had a trading volume of 1,032,245 shares, compared to its average volume of 959,398. A. O. Smith Co. has a 12-month low of $65.08 and a 12-month high of $92.44. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $82.67 and a 200 day moving average price of $83.68. The firm has a market cap of $11.49 billion, a PE ratio of 20.30, a P/E/G ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 1.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a current ratio of 1.70 and a quick ratio of 1.07.

A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, July 23rd. The industrial products company reported $1.06 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.07 by ($0.01). A. O. Smith had a return on equity of 31.04% and a net margin of 14.67%. The business had revenue of $1.02 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.01 EPS. A. O. Smith’s quarterly revenue was up 6.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that A. O. Smith Co. will post 3.77 EPS for the current year.

A. O. Smith Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 31st will be paid a $0.34 dividend. This represents a $1.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.73%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 31st. This is an increase from A. O. Smith’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. A. O. Smith’s payout ratio is presently 32.99%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently commented on AOS. Stifel Nicolaus upgraded A. O. Smith from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the company from $97.00 to $98.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. UBS Group lifted their price target on A. O. Smith from $73.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research note on Monday, July 8th. Robert W. Baird cut their price target on A. O. Smith from $92.00 to $90.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded A. O. Smith from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, A. O. Smith currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $89.67.

Insider Transactions at A. O. Smith

In other news, SVP Samuel M. Carver sold 14,705 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $81.00, for a total value of $1,191,105.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 2,399 shares in the company, valued at $194,319. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 2.70% of the company’s stock.

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.