Robert W. Baird Trims A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS) Target Price to $90.00

A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS) had its target price lowered by Robert W. Baird from $92.00 to $90.00 in a research note released on Wednesday morning, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a neutral rating on the industrial products company’s stock.

A number of other analysts have also commented on AOS. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of A. O. Smith from $73.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a sell rating in a research note on Monday, July 8th. Citigroup raised their price target on shares of A. O. Smith from $82.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a research report on Monday, April 8th. Oppenheimer reissued a market perform rating on shares of A. O. Smith in a report on Thursday, April 18th. Stifel Nicolaus raised A. O. Smith from a hold rating to a buy rating and lifted their target price for the company from $97.00 to $98.00 in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on A. O. Smith from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a hold rating in a research report on Friday, April 12th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $89.29.

A. O. Smith Stock Performance

NYSE:AOS opened at $84.54 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $12.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.90, a P/E/G ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 1.15. A. O. Smith has a twelve month low of $64.14 and a twelve month high of $92.44. The company has a fifty day moving average of $83.59 and a 200-day moving average of $83.82. The company has a quick ratio of 1.06, a current ratio of 1.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07.

A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS) last announced 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 for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1 billion. A. O. Smith had a net margin of 14.67% and a return on equity of 31.04%. A. O. Smith’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.01 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that A. O. Smith will post 4.06 EPS for the current year.

A. O. Smith Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 15th. Investors of record on Wednesday, July 31st will be given a $0.32 dividend. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.51%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 31st. A. O. Smith’s payout ratio is currently 33.16%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On A. O. Smith

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its stake in A. O. Smith by 13.9% in the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 10,836 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $894,000 after acquiring an additional 1,325 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. bought a new position in A. O. Smith during the fourth quarter valued at $247,000. Raymond James & Associates grew its holdings in A. O. Smith by 3.7% during the fourth quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 168,182 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $13,865,000 after purchasing an additional 6,012 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc. increased its position in A. O. Smith by 21.5% in the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 10,008 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $825,000 after buying an additional 1,772 shares during the last quarter. Finally, IFG Advisory LLC bought a new stake in shares of A. O. Smith in the fourth quarter valued at $2,240,000. 76.10% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.