A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS) Shares Sold by Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV

Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV trimmed its position in A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS) by 32.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 14,520 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 7,031 shares during the period. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV’s holdings in A. O. Smith were worth $990,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of A. O. Smith by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,231,084 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $83,972,000 after purchasing an additional 12,305 shares in the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. grew its holdings in shares of A. O. Smith by 7.1% during the fourth quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 27,825 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,898,000 after buying an additional 1,834 shares in the last quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC raised its position in shares of A. O. Smith by 124.5% in the fourth quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 6,694 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $457,000 after buying an additional 3,712 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of A. O. Smith in the fourth quarter worth about $7,015,000. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. boosted its position in A. O. Smith by 16.6% during the fourth quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 122,726 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $8,371,000 after acquiring an additional 17,442 shares during the last quarter. 76.10% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

A. O. Smith Stock Up 0.4 %

Shares of AOS opened at $68.26 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.55, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10. The firm has a market cap of $9.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 1.28. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $65.52 and its 200 day moving average price is $68.79. A. O. Smith Co. has a 12-month low of $58.83 and a 12-month high of $92.45.

A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 29th. The industrial products company reported $0.95 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.90 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $963.90 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $950.56 million. A. O. Smith had a net margin of 13.98% and a return on equity of 28.87%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 1.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.00 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that A. O. Smith Co. will post 3.76 earnings per share for the current year.

A. O. Smith Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 30th will be issued a dividend of $0.34 per share. This represents a $1.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.99%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 30th. A. O. Smith’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 37.99%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on shares of A. O. Smith from $75.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on A. O. Smith from $75.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Citigroup cut their target price on A. O. Smith from $69.00 to $65.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 14th. UBS Group lowered their price target on shares of A. O. Smith from $80.00 to $74.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of A. O. Smith from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $76.17.

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.