Quarry LP Reduces Holdings in A. O. Smith Corporation $AOS

Quarry LP cut its stake in shares of A. O. Smith Corporation (NYSE:AOS) by 59.7% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,834 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 4,194 shares during the quarter. Quarry LP’s holdings in A. O. Smith were worth $185,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. AXA S.A. purchased a new stake in A. O. Smith in the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,296,000. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in A. O. Smith in the 4th quarter worth approximately $332,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its holdings in A. O. Smith by 65.4% in the 4th quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 325,608 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $22,210,000 after buying an additional 128,729 shares during the period. Caxton Associates LP lifted its holdings in A. O. Smith by 8.3% in the 4th quarter. Caxton Associates LP now owns 31,070 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,119,000 after buying an additional 2,385 shares during the period. Finally, Centiva Capital LP purchased a new stake in A. O. Smith in the 4th quarter worth approximately $2,090,000. 76.10% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Chairman Kevin J. Wheeler sold 22,200 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.26, for a total transaction of $1,581,972.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman owned 100,647 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,172,105.22. This trade represents a 18.07% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.76% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

A. O. Smith Trading Down 0.3%

AOS opened at $71.41 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $10.01 billion, a PE ratio of 19.89, a PEG 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. The business has a 50 day moving average of $70.15 and a 200-day moving average of $67.29. A. O. Smith Corporation has a 52 week low of $58.83 and a 52 week high of $92.06.

A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 24th. The industrial products company reported $1.07 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.97 by $0.10. A. O. Smith had a return on equity of 28.42% and a net margin of 13.68%.The company had revenue of $1.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $997.89 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.06 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter 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. Equities research analysts predict that A. O. Smith Corporation will post 3.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

A. O. Smith Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed 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 (DPR) is 37.88%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have weighed in on AOS. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on A. O. Smith from $78.00 to $81.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, July 21st. Oppenheimer increased their price objective on A. O. Smith from $82.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, July 28th. UBS Group reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $76.00 price objective (up previously from $74.00) on shares of A. O. Smith in a report on Monday, July 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. initiated coverage on A. O. Smith in a research note on Tuesday, June 24th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $70.00 target price for the company. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of A. O. Smith in a research note on Saturday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, A. O. Smith presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $77.43.

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.