Mufg Securities Americas Inc. Makes New Investment in A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS)

Mufg Securities Americas Inc. bought a new position in A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 1,759 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $120,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Paradoxiom Capital L.P. purchased a new stake in A. O. Smith in the 4th quarter worth approximately $5,164,000. Man Group plc increased its stake in shares of A. O. Smith by 82.2% during the 4th quarter. Man Group plc now owns 151,182 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $10,312,000 after purchasing an additional 68,214 shares during the last quarter. Nomura Holdings Inc. increased its stake in shares of A. O. Smith by 59.5% during the 4th quarter. Nomura Holdings Inc. now owns 25,122 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,714,000 after purchasing an additional 9,373 shares during the last quarter. Numerai GP LLC acquired a new position in shares of A. O. Smith during the 4th quarter worth $1,887,000. Finally, Occudo Quantitative Strategies LP acquired a new position in shares of A. O. Smith during the 4th quarter worth $236,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.10% of the company’s stock.

A. O. Smith Stock Performance

NYSE:AOS opened at $70.51 on Friday. A. O. Smith Co. has a 1 year low of $58.83 and a 1 year high of $92.45. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $65.68 and its 200 day simple moving average is $68.56. 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 capitalization of $10.02 billion, a PE ratio of 19.42, a PEG ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 1.28.

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

A. O. Smith Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 15th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 30th were paid a $0.34 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, April 30th. This represents a $1.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.93%. A. O. Smith’s payout ratio is presently 37.99%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently commented on AOS shares. StockNews.com upgraded shares of A. O. Smith from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on shares of A. O. Smith from $75.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. UBS Group dropped 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 note on Friday, January 31st. Citigroup dropped their price target on shares of A. O. Smith from $69.00 to $65.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of A. O. Smith in a research note on Saturday, May 10th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus 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.