Cadence Bank Boosts Stock Position in A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS)

Cadence Bank boosted its holdings in A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS) by 18.5% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 8,938 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 1,394 shares during the quarter. Cadence Bank’s holdings in A. O. Smith were worth $803,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. purchased a new position in A. O. Smith in the second quarter valued at $25,000. Isthmus Partners LLC purchased a new position in A. O. Smith in the second quarter valued at $27,000. Quarry LP increased its holdings in A. O. Smith by 214.9% in the second quarter. Quarry LP now owns 359 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 245 shares during the last quarter. Waldron Private Wealth LLC purchased a new position in A. O. Smith in the third quarter valued at $32,000. Finally, Wolff Wiese Magana LLC purchased a new position in A. O. Smith in the third quarter valued at $37,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.10% of the company’s stock.

A. O. Smith Price Performance

Shares of AOS opened at $74.09 on Thursday. A. O. Smith Co. has a fifty-two week low of $70.73 and a fifty-two week high of $92.44. The company has a market capitalization of $10.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.00 and a beta of 1.17. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $79.64 and a 200-day simple moving average of $81.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.67.

A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The industrial products company reported $0.82 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.82. A. O. Smith had a net margin of 14.41% and a return on equity of 30.09%. The business had revenue of $957.80 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $960.36 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.90 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that A. O. Smith Co. will post 3.78 earnings per share for the current year.

A. O. Smith Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, October 31st were given a $0.34 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, October 31st. This represents a $1.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.84%. This is an increase from A. O. Smith’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. A. O. Smith’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 35.79%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AOS has been the topic of several research reports. DA Davidson lowered A. O. Smith from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $80.00 price objective on the stock. in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. StockNews.com raised A. O. Smith from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price objective on A. O. Smith from $92.00 to $91.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Robert W. Baird dropped their price objective on A. O. Smith from $82.00 to $81.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, UBS Group raised A. O. Smith from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $75.00 to $80.00 in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, A. O. Smith presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $86.71.

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.