A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS) Shares Acquired by Virtu Financial LLC

Virtu Financial LLC grew its stake in A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS) by 288.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 17,747 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 13,178 shares during the quarter. Virtu Financial LLC’s holdings in A. O. Smith were worth $1,211,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Quantbot Technologies LP increased its stake in shares of A. O. Smith by 599.7% in the 4th quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP now owns 66,238 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $4,518,000 after acquiring an additional 56,771 shares during the last quarter. Semanteon Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in shares of A. O. Smith in the 4th quarter worth $218,000. Blueshift Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of A. O. Smith during the 4th quarter worth $521,000. iA Global Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of A. O. Smith by 174.4% during the 4th quarter. iA Global Asset Management Inc. now owns 26,816 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,829,000 after purchasing an additional 17,042 shares during the period. Finally, Signaturefd LLC grew its holdings in shares of A. O. Smith by 40.0% during the 4th quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 1,299 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $89,000 after purchasing an additional 371 shares during the period. 76.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

A. O. Smith Stock Performance

Shares of A. O. Smith stock opened at $66.47 on Monday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $67.72 and a 200 day moving average of $73.31. A. O. Smith Co. has a 12 month low of $64.55 and a 12 month high of $92.45. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 1.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a current ratio of 1.55 and a quick ratio of 0.96.

A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The industrial products company reported $0.85 earnings per share (EPS) 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%. As a group, 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 business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 31st were paid a $0.34 dividend. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.05%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 31st. A. O. Smith’s payout ratio is presently 37.47%.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Douglas Samuel Karge sold 419 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.65, for a total transaction of $27,507.35. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 2,749 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $180,471.85. This trade represents a 13.23 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP Robert J. Heideman sold 1,026 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 directly owns 8,889 shares in the company, valued at $583,562.85. This trade represents a 10.35 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.76% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AOS has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. StockNews.com upgraded A. O. Smith from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on A. O. Smith from $90.00 to $84.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of A. O. Smith in a report on Saturday. UBS Group lowered their price target on A. O. Smith from $80.00 to $74.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Citigroup lowered their price target on A. O. Smith from $78.00 to $73.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 13th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, A. O. Smith has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $80.86.

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.