Benjamin Edwards Inc. Purchases New Holdings in A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS)

Benjamin Edwards Inc. bought a new position in A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 1,141 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $93,000.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Isthmus Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of A. O. Smith during the 2nd quarter worth about $27,000. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its holdings in A. O. Smith by 157.2% during the second quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 463 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 283 shares in the last quarter. ORG Partners LLC boosted its holdings in A. O. Smith by 665.0% during the first quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 612 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $55,000 after purchasing an additional 532 shares in the last quarter. Twin Tree Management LP grew its stake in shares of A. O. Smith by 188.9% in the 1st quarter. Twin Tree Management LP now owns 737 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $66,000 after purchasing an additional 1,566 shares during the period. Finally, Fidelis Capital Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of A. O. Smith in the 1st quarter worth approximately $109,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.10% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Samuel M. Carver sold 14,705 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 7th. The shares were 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $194,319. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 2.70% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AOS has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Robert W. Baird decreased their price target on A. O. Smith from $92.00 to $90.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. StockNews.com raised shares of A. O. Smith from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 13th. Stifel Nicolaus raised shares of A. O. Smith from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $97.00 to $98.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 24th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of A. O. Smith from $73.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research note on Monday, July 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, A. O. Smith has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $89.67.

A. O. Smith Trading Down 1.7 %

AOS opened at $82.89 on Monday. A. O. Smith Co. has a 1-year low of $64.14 and a 1-year high of $92.44. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $82.27 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $83.96. The stock has a market capitalization of $12.16 billion, a PE ratio of 21.47, a PEG ratio of 2.23 and a beta of 1.15. The company has a current ratio of 1.70, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07.

A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 23rd. The industrial products company reported $1.06 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.07 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $1.02 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1 billion. A. O. Smith had a return on equity of 31.04% and a net margin of 14.67%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.01 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that A. O. Smith Co. will post 4.07 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

A. O. Smith Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 15th. Investors of record on Wednesday, July 31st were given a $0.32 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, July 31st. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.54%. A. O. Smith’s payout ratio is 33.16%.

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.