Legacy Capital Wealth Partners LLC Acquires Shares of 2,782 A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS)

Legacy Capital Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 2,782 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $228,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its stake in A. O. Smith by 157.2% in the 2nd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 463 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 283 shares in the last quarter. ORG Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of A. O. Smith by 665.0% during the 1st quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 612 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $55,000 after purchasing an additional 532 shares during the period. Twin Tree Management LP lifted its holdings in A. O. Smith by 188.9% during the 1st quarter. Twin Tree Management LP now owns 737 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $66,000 after purchasing an additional 1,566 shares in the last quarter. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in A. O. Smith in the 1st quarter worth about $109,000. Finally, First Command Advisory Services Inc. purchased a new position in A. O. Smith during the 1st quarter valued at about $132,000. Institutional investors own 76.10% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Samuel M. Carver sold 14,705 shares of A. O. Smith stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $81.00, for a total value of $1,191,105.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 2,399 shares in the company, valued at approximately $194,319. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 2.70% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

A. O. Smith Stock Performance

A. O. Smith stock opened at $80.35 on Thursday. A. O. Smith Co. has a fifty-two week low of $64.14 and a fifty-two week high of $92.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a current ratio of 1.70. The stock has a market cap of $11.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.29 and a beta of 1.15. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $82.73 and its 200-day moving average price is $84.12.

A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 23rd. The industrial products company reported $1.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.07 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $1.02 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1 billion. A. O. Smith had a return on equity of 31.04% and a net margin of 14.67%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.01 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that A. O. Smith Co. will post 4.07 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

A. O. Smith Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 31st were issued a $0.32 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, July 31st. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.59%. A. O. Smith’s payout ratio is 33.16%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus upgraded shares of A. O. Smith from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $97.00 to $98.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 24th. StockNews.com raised shares of A. O. Smith from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 13th. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of A. O. Smith from $73.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a report on Monday, July 8th. Finally, Robert W. Baird lowered their price objective on A. O. Smith from $92.00 to $90.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 24th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, A. O. Smith has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $89.67.

A. O. Smith Company 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.