Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. Invests $954,000 in A. O. Smith Corporation $AOS

Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. acquired a new position in A. O. Smith Corporation (NYSE:AOS) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 14,260 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $954,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. FourThought Financial Partners LLC boosted its stake in A. O. Smith by 29.1% during the fourth quarter. FourThought Financial Partners LLC now owns 34,271 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,292,000 after buying an additional 7,715 shares in the last quarter. IFP Advisors Inc boosted its stake in A. O. Smith by 108.5% during the fourth quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 1,947 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $130,000 after buying an additional 1,013 shares in the last quarter. Fairtree Asset Management Pty Ltd boosted its stake in A. O. Smith by 24.3% during the fourth quarter. Fairtree Asset Management Pty Ltd now owns 20,089 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,344,000 after buying an additional 3,922 shares in the last quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV boosted its stake in A. O. Smith by 3,481.8% during the fourth quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV now owns 394 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 383 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC boosted its stake in A. O. Smith by 31.8% during the fourth quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 642 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 155 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.10% of the company’s stock.

Key A. O. Smith News

Here are the key news stories impacting A. O. Smith this week:

• Negative Sentiment: Zacks Research cut A. O. Smith’s FY2026 EPS estimate to $3.79 from $4.01, signaling weaker expected full-year profitability. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: The firm also lowered FY2027 EPS to $4.12 from $4.37 and FY2028 EPS to $4.61 from $4.87, suggesting softer longer-term earnings growth expectations.
• Negative Sentiment: Quarterly estimates were trimmed across several periods, including Q2 2026 ($1.01 vs. $1.10), Q3 2026 ($0.96 vs. $0.99), Q1 2027 ($0.98 vs. $1.04), Q2 2027 ($1.09 vs. $1.20), Q3 2027 ($1.04 vs. $1.09), and Q4 2027 ($1.01 vs. $1.05), reinforcing the bearish tone.
• Neutral Sentiment: Zacks Research kept a Strong Sell rating on AOS, which adds to sentiment headwinds but does not by itself change fundamentals.
• Neutral Sentiment: The new estimates are still close to the current consensus FY2026 EPS of $3.78, so the market may be focused more on the downgrade trend than on a dramatic forecast miss.

A. O. Smith Stock Up 0.3%

Shares of NYSE AOS opened at $57.34 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $7.90 billion, a PE ratio of 15.25, a PEG ratio of 1.26 and a beta of 1.23. The business has a fifty day moving average of $63.05 and a two-hundred day moving average of $67.93. A. O. Smith Corporation has a 52-week low of $54.16 and a 52-week high of $81.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a current ratio of 1.56.

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

A. O. Smith Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 30th were issued a dividend of $0.36 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, April 30th. This represents a $1.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.5%. A. O. Smith’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 38.30%.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Darrell W. Schuh sold 1,104 shares of A. O. Smith stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 4th. The stock was 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 directly owned 2,201 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $163,732.39. The trade was a 33.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.50% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Robert W. Baird set a $70.00 price target on shares of A. O. Smith in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Citigroup decreased their price target on shares of A. O. Smith from $74.00 to $65.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, May 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated an “underweight” rating and set a $60.00 price target (down from $65.00) on shares of A. O. Smith in a research note on Friday, May 15th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of A. O. Smith from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 14th. Finally, DA Davidson set a $67.00 price target on shares of A. O. Smith and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $69.89.

A. O. Smith Profile

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.