ING Groep NV Takes Position in A. O. Smith Corporation $AOS

ING Groep NV bought a new stake in A. O. Smith Corporation (NYSE:AOS) in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor bought 14,652 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $980,000.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV grew its holdings in shares of A. O. Smith by 3,481.8% in the fourth quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV now owns 394 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 383 shares in the last quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC grew its holdings in A. O. Smith by 3,125.0% during the third quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC now owns 387 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 375 shares during the period. Torren Management LLC bought a new position in A. O. Smith during the fourth quarter valued at $31,000. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC bought a new position in A. O. Smith during the fourth quarter valued at $32,000. Finally, Los Angeles Capital Management LLC bought a new position in A. O. Smith during the fourth quarter valued at $35,000. 76.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have weighed in on AOS shares. Oppenheimer set a $75.00 price objective on A. O. Smith and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday. DA Davidson set a $67.00 price objective on A. O. Smith and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, May 4th. Zacks Research lowered A. O. Smith from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Weiss Ratings lowered A. O. Smith from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 27th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus set a $75.00 price objective on A. O. Smith in a report on Friday, May 1st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $69.33.

A. O. Smith News Roundup

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

• Negative Sentiment: Zacks Research maintained a Strong Sell rating on A. O. Smith, which can weigh on investor confidence. New Strong Sell Stocks for June 10th
• Negative Sentiment: The firm lowered FY2026 EPS to $3.76 from $3.79, and cut Q2 2026, Q4 2026, and Q1 2027 estimates slightly, signaling softer near-term earnings expectations for the water-heater and plumbing products company.
• Negative Sentiment: Recent estimate cuts also covered Q4 2026 and FY2028, suggesting analysts see only modest earnings growth ahead despite AOS already trading below its 50-day and 200-day moving averages.
• Neutral Sentiment: Zacks did nudge up its Q3 2027 and Q4 2027 EPS estimates, but the increases were small and likely not enough to offset the broader negative rating and near-term cuts.
• Positive Sentiment: One market note highlighted A. O. Smith as still undervalued with a strong GF Score, which may be helping support some buying interest after the recent pullback. A.O. Smith Corp (AOS) Stock Up 3.3% and Still Undervalued — GF Score: 84/100

A. O. Smith Trading Down 3.2%

NYSE:AOS opened at $57.33 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $7.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.25, a P/E/G ratio of 1.31 and a beta of 1.18. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $60.98 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $67.25. A. O. Smith Corporation has a 1 year low of $54.16 and a 1 year high of $81.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 1.56 and a quick ratio of 1.00.

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

A. O. Smith Announces Dividend

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

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.