A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS) Hits New 12-Month Low – Should You Sell?

A. O. Smith Corporation (NYSE:AOS) reached a new 52-week low during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as low as $55.08 and last traded at $55.9690, with a volume of 79855 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $56.70.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AOS has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Wall Street Zen cut shares of A. O. Smith from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, February 14th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price target on shares of A. O. Smith from $69.00 to $61.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 13th. Robert W. Baird set a $70.00 price target on shares of A. O. Smith in a report on Friday, May 1st. Stifel Nicolaus set a $75.00 price target on shares of A. O. Smith in a report on Friday, May 1st. Finally, DA Davidson set a $67.00 price target on shares of A. O. Smith and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, May 4th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, A. O. Smith has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $69.89.

A. O. Smith Stock Up 1.4%

The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $63.52 and its 200 day moving average price is $68.07. The firm has a market cap of $7.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.23 and a beta of 1.23. The company has a quick ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 1.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31.

A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $0.85 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.94 by ($0.09). The firm had revenue of $945.60 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $974.06 million. A. O. Smith had a return on equity of 28.42% and a net margin of 13.84%.The firm’s revenue was down 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.95 EPS. A. O. Smith has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.600-3.900 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that A. O. Smith Corporation will post 3.78 earnings per share for the current year.

A. O. Smith Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 30th were given a $0.36 dividend. This represents a $1.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 30th. A. O. Smith’s dividend payout ratio is currently 38.30%.

Insider Transactions at A. O. Smith

In related news, SVP Darrell W. Schuh sold 1,104 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $74.39, for a total value of $82,126.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 2,201 shares in the company, valued at $163,732.39. This represents a 33.40% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.50% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On A. O. Smith

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Edgestream Partners L.P. boosted its position in shares of A. O. Smith by 473.5% during the 1st quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. now owns 71,236 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $4,697,000 after purchasing an additional 58,814 shares in the last quarter. Parvin Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of A. O. Smith by 3.0% during the 1st quarter. Parvin Asset Management LLC now owns 14,920 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $984,000 after purchasing an additional 430 shares in the last quarter. Empire Financial Management Company LLC boosted its position in shares of A. O. Smith by 6.0% during the 1st quarter. Empire Financial Management Company LLC now owns 23,690 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,562,000 after purchasing an additional 1,342 shares in the last quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System boosted its position in shares of A. O. Smith by 27.2% during the 1st quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 136,319 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $8,989,000 after purchasing an additional 29,112 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC boosted its position in shares of A. O. Smith by 68.3% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 31,073 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,049,000 after purchasing an additional 12,612 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 76.10% of the company’s stock.

About A. O. Smith

A. O. Smith Corporation, based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, is a leading manufacturer of water heating and water treatment products for residential and commercial applications. Since its founding in 1874, the company has built a reputation for producing reliable, energy-efficient water heaters, boilers and pressure vessels. Its product portfolio encompasses gas, electric, condensing and tankless water heaters, as well as specialty boilers designed to meet a variety of building and industrial needs.

The company operates through two primary segments: North America and Asia.