Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd Makes New $1.63 Million Investment in A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS)

Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd purchased a new position in shares of A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 23,914 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,631,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. ING Groep NV increased its stake in A. O. Smith by 191.2% during the fourth quarter. ING Groep NV now owns 46,713 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $3,186,000 after purchasing an additional 30,670 shares during the period. Private Advisor Group LLC increased its stake in shares of A. O. Smith by 124.5% during the fourth quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 6,694 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $457,000 after buying an additional 3,712 shares during the period. Atria Wealth Solutions Inc. increased its stake in shares of A. O. Smith by 9.6% during the fourth quarter. Atria Wealth Solutions Inc. now owns 4,691 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $320,000 after buying an additional 410 shares during the period. D.A. Davidson & CO. increased its stake in shares of A. O. Smith by 6.7% during the fourth quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 10,419 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $711,000 after buying an additional 654 shares during the period. Finally, CIBC Asset Management Inc increased its stake in shares of A. O. Smith by 684.3% during the fourth quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 138,991 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $9,462,000 after buying an additional 121,270 shares during the period. 76.10% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Douglas Samuel Karge sold 419 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.65, for a total value of $27,507.35. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 2,749 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $180,471.85. This represents a 13.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, VP Robert J. Heideman sold 1,026 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.65, for a total value of $67,356.90. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 8,889 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $583,562.85. This trade represents a 10.35 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 2.70% of the company’s stock.

A. O. Smith Stock Performance

Shares of AOS opened at $66.95 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $68.25 and a 200 day moving average price of $75.12. The company has a quick ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 1.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10. The company has a market capitalization of $9.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 1.17. A. O. Smith Co. has a 52-week low of $64.55 and a 52-week high of $92.44.

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

A. O. Smith Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 31st were issued a $0.34 dividend. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.03%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 31st. A. O. Smith’s payout ratio is currently 37.47%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus cut their target price 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. Citigroup cut their target price 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. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of A. O. Smith in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of A. O. Smith from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Oppenheimer cut their target price 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. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus 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.