A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS) Stock Price Crosses Above 200-Day Moving Average – Here’s Why

Shares of A. O. Smith Corporation (NYSE:AOS) passed above its two hundred day moving average during trading on Monday. The stock has a two hundred day moving average of $63.52 and traded as high as $65.65. A. O. Smith shares last traded at $65.3760, with a volume of 1,781,306 shares.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently commented on AOS. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “sell” rating and set a $58.00 price objective on shares of A. O. Smith in a report on Friday, October 30th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $59.00 price objective on shares of A. O. Smith and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, October 18th. Oppenheimer restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $72.00 price objective (down from $75.00) on shares of A. O. Smith in a research note on Wednesday, October 21st. Zacks Research raised A. O. Smith from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, August 10th. Finally, Longbow Research cut A. O. Smith from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, October 19th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $66.00.

A. O. Smith Stock Up 5.3%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a current ratio of 1.64. The business’s 50 day moving average is $59.14 and its 200-day moving average is $63.46. The stock has a market cap of $9.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.72, a PEG ratio of 1.49 and a beta of 1.03.

A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 29th. The industrial products company reported $0.93 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.90 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $940.50 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $960.20 million. A. O. Smith had a return on equity of 27.66% and a net margin of 13.01%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down .2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.94 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that A. O. Smith Corporation will post 3.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

A. O. Smith Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 30th will be given a dividend of $0.38 per share. This represents a $1.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 30th. This is a positive change from A. O. Smith’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.36. A. O. Smith’s dividend payout ratio is presently 42.34%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On A. O. Smith

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. StoneRidge PMG Advisors LLC bought a new position in A. O. Smith in the third quarter valued at about $499,000. Parallel Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of A. O. Smith by 111.1% in the 3rd quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 5,086 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $287,000 after purchasing an additional 2,677 shares during the period. Wedbush Securities Inc. grew its holdings in A. O. Smith by 2.4% during the 3rd quarter. Wedbush Securities Inc. now owns 12,705 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $716,000 after buying an additional 297 shares in the last quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of A. O. Smith by 118.2% during the third quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 29,200 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,646,000 after purchasing an additional 15,818 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Willis Investment Counsel increased its position in shares of A. O. Smith by 6.2% during the 3rd quarter. Willis Investment Counsel now owns 80,989 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $4,565,000 after purchasing an additional 4,763 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.10% of the company’s stock.

A. O. Smith Company Profile

A. O. Smith Corporation is a manufacturer of water heating and water treatment products for residential, commercial and industrial customers. Its portfolio includes gas and electric storage water heaters, tankless water heaters, boilers, heat pump water heaters, water filtration systems, water softeners and reverse-osmosis products.

The company markets products under the A. O. Smith brand and other regional brands, serving applications ranging from homes and apartments to hotels, hospitals, schools, manufacturing facilities and other commercial properties.