Renaissance Technologies LLC Grows Stock Holdings in A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS)

Renaissance Technologies LLC lifted its position in A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS) by 460.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 245,500 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 201,700 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC owned approximately 0.17% of A. O. Smith worth $16,746,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of AOS. Ridgewood Investments LLC purchased a new position in A. O. Smith in the fourth quarter worth $60,000. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of A. O. Smith in the 4th quarter worth $66,000. Signaturefd LLC grew its stake in 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 buying an additional 371 shares during the last quarter. Kieckhefer Group LLC acquired a new position in A. O. Smith during the 4th quarter valued at about $123,000. Finally, Headlands Technologies LLC purchased a new stake in A. O. Smith in the fourth quarter valued at about $201,000. Institutional investors own 76.10% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on AOS shares. Citigroup dropped their price target on A. O. Smith from $69.00 to $65.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price target on shares of A. O. Smith from $90.00 to $84.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Oppenheimer decreased their price target on shares of A. O. Smith from $88.00 to $84.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. UBS Group dropped their price objective on shares of A. O. Smith from $80.00 to $74.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of A. O. Smith in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, A. O. Smith has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $78.00.

A. O. Smith Trading Up 0.9 %

NYSE AOS opened at $65.11 on Tuesday. The company has a fifty day moving average of $65.68 and a 200 day moving average of $71.09. The company has a market capitalization of $9.37 billion, a PE ratio of 17.94, a P/E/G ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 1.26. 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 Co. has a 1 year low of $58.83 and a 1 year high of $92.45.

A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The industrial products company reported $0.85 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.90 by ($0.05). A. O. Smith had a return on equity of 28.87% and a net margin of 13.98%. Research 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 paid a $0.34 dividend. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.09%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 30th. A. O. Smith’s dividend payout ratio is currently 37.47%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Robert J. Heideman sold 1,026 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.65, for a total value of $67,356.90. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 8,889 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $583,562.85. The trade was a 10.35 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Douglas Samuel Karge sold 419 shares of the business’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 directly owns 2,749 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $180,471.85. This represents a 13.23 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.76% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

A. O. Smith 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.