SBI Securities Co. Ltd. Makes New Investment in A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS)

SBI Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm purchased 7,130 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $486,000.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in AOS. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new position in shares of A. O. Smith in the 3rd quarter valued at about $43,000. Truvestments Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of A. O. Smith in the 3rd quarter valued at about $55,000. Ridgewood Investments LLC purchased a new position in shares of A. O. Smith in the 4th quarter valued at about $60,000. Huntington National Bank increased its holdings in shares of A. O. Smith by 19.8% in the 3rd quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 812 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $73,000 after purchasing an additional 134 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Transamerica Financial Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in A. O. Smith in the 3rd quarter valued at about $82,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.10% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at A. O. Smith

In other news, VP Robert J. Heideman sold 1,026 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.65, for a total transaction of $67,356.90. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 8,889 shares in the company, valued at $583,562.85. This represents a 10.35 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Douglas Samuel Karge sold 419 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.65, for a total transaction of $27,507.35. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 2,749 shares in the company, valued at $180,471.85. The trade was a 13.23 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.76% of the company’s stock.

A. O. Smith Price Performance

A. O. Smith stock opened at $65.61 on Wednesday. A. O. Smith Co. has a 12-month low of $64.55 and a 12-month high of $92.44. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.08, a P/E/G ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 1.18. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $67.99 and its two-hundred day moving average is $74.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a current ratio of 1.55 and a quick ratio of 0.96.

A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The industrial products company reported $0.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.90 by ($0.05). A. O. Smith had a return on equity of 28.87% and a net margin of 13.98%. Equities analysts predict that A. O. Smith Co. will post 3.76 earnings per share for the current year.

A. O. Smith Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 31st were issued a dividend of $0.34 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 31st. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.07%. A. O. Smith’s payout ratio is currently 37.47%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AOS has been the topic of a number of research reports. Oppenheimer lowered their price objective on shares of A. O. Smith from $88.00 to $84.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Citigroup lowered their price objective on shares of A. O. Smith from $78.00 to $73.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price objective on shares of A. O. Smith from $90.00 to $84.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of A. O. Smith in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of A. O. Smith from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, A. O. Smith presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $80.86.

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.