Stanley Laman Group Ltd. Sells 1,349 Shares of A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS)

Stanley Laman Group Ltd. decreased its holdings in A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS) by 2.9% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 45,015 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 1,349 shares during the quarter. Stanley Laman Group Ltd.’s holdings in A. O. Smith were worth $4,044,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of AOS. American International Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of A. O. Smith by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. American International Group Inc. now owns 33,231 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,740,000 after buying an additional 163 shares during the last quarter. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC bought a new position in shares of A. O. Smith in the first quarter worth about $215,000. Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of A. O. Smith by 12.3% during the first quarter. Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,994 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $268,000 after purchasing an additional 328 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its stake in shares of A. O. Smith by 17.1% during the first quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 31,789 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,844,000 after purchasing an additional 4,636 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Atwater Malick LLC increased its holdings in shares of A. O. Smith by 1.6% in the first quarter. Atwater Malick LLC now owns 109,608 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $9,806,000 after purchasing an additional 1,767 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.10% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at A. O. Smith

In other news, SVP Samuel M. Carver sold 14,705 shares of A. O. Smith stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $81.00, for a total transaction of $1,191,105.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 2,399 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $194,319. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 2.70% of the company’s stock.

A. O. Smith Stock Down 0.5 %

Shares of A. O. Smith stock opened at $78.23 on Wednesday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $82.67 and a 200 day simple moving average of $83.59. The stock has a market cap of $11.41 billion, a PE ratio of 20.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 1.15. The company has a quick ratio of 1.07, a current ratio of 1.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. A. O. Smith Co. has a 12 month low of $65.08 and a 12 month high of $92.44.

A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 23rd. The industrial products company reported $1.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.07 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $1.02 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1 billion. A. O. Smith had a return on equity of 31.04% and a net margin of 14.67%. A. O. Smith’s quarterly revenue was up 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.01 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that A. O. Smith Co. will post 3.78 EPS for the current year.

A. O. Smith Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, October 31st will be issued a dividend of $0.34 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 31st. This represents a $1.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.74%. This is a boost from A. O. Smith’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. A. O. Smith’s payout ratio is currently 32.99%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have issued reports on the company. StockNews.com raised A. O. Smith from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 18th. UBS Group boosted their target price on A. O. Smith from $73.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research report on Monday, July 8th. Stifel Nicolaus upgraded A. O. Smith from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price target for the company from $97.00 to $98.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 24th. Finally, Robert W. Baird dropped their price objective on A. O. Smith from $92.00 to $90.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, A. O. Smith presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $89.67.

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.