PBU The Pension Fund of Early Childhood & Youth Educators Invests $3.15 Million in A. O. Smith Corporation $AOS

PBU The Pension Fund of Early Childhood & Youth Educators acquired a new position in A. O. Smith Corporation (NYSE:AOS) in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm acquired 47,042 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,146,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Rothschild Investment LLC raised its stake in shares of A. O. Smith by 3,125.0% in the third quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC now owns 387 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 375 shares during the last quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV increased its position in shares of 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 valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 383 shares during the last quarter. Torren Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of A. O. Smith during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of A. O. Smith during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC increased its position in shares of A. O. Smith by 67.9% during the third quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 487 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 197 shares during the last quarter. 76.10% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently commented on AOS shares. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price target on A. O. Smith from $69.00 to $61.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 13th. Robert W. Baird set a $70.00 price target on A. O. Smith in a research report on Friday, May 1st. DA Davidson set a $67.00 price target on A. O. Smith and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Wall Street Zen downgraded A. O. Smith from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, February 14th. Finally, Citigroup decreased their target price on A. O. Smith from $74.00 to $65.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $69.89.

A. O. Smith Trading Up 0.4%

Shares of A. O. Smith stock opened at $57.22 on Friday. A. O. Smith Corporation has a 52-week low of $54.16 and a 52-week high of $81.86. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $61.37 and its 200 day simple moving average is $67.33. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.22, a P/E/G ratio of 1.26 and a beta of 1.18. 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 announced 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). A. O. Smith had a net margin of 13.84% and a return on equity of 28.42%. The firm had revenue of $945.60 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $974.06 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.95 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was down 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. A. O. Smith has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.600-3.900 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that A. O. Smith Corporation will post 3.78 EPS for the current year.

A. O. Smith Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 30th were paid 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 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.