Zacks Research Has Negative View of A. O. Smith Q4 Earnings

A. O. Smith Co. (NYSE:AOS) – Analysts at Zacks Research reduced their Q4 2024 earnings estimates for shares of A. O. Smith in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday, December 11th. Zacks Research analyst R. Department now anticipates that the industrial products company will post earnings of $0.88 per share for the quarter, down from their previous estimate of $0.90. The consensus estimate for A. O. Smith’s current full-year earnings is $3.78 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for A. O. Smith’s Q1 2025 earnings at $0.96 EPS, Q2 2025 earnings at $1.08 EPS, Q3 2025 earnings at $0.91 EPS, FY2025 earnings at $3.94 EPS, Q1 2026 earnings at $1.04 EPS, Q2 2026 earnings at $1.17 EPS, Q3 2026 earnings at $1.04 EPS and FY2026 earnings at $4.35 EPS.

A number of other research firms have also issued reports on AOS. StockNews.com lowered A. O. Smith from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday. UBS Group raised shares of A. O. Smith from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and increased their target price for the company from $75.00 to $80.00 in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Citigroup cut their price target on A. O. Smith from $85.00 to $78.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, December 9th. DA Davidson cut shares of A. O. Smith from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $80.00 target price for the company. in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Robert W. Baird cut their price target on A. O. Smith from $82.00 to $81.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $83.17.

A. O. Smith Trading Down 0.2 %

NYSE AOS opened at $72.48 on Friday. 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 has a one year low of $70.73 and a one year high of $92.44. The firm has a market cap of $10.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.07, a PEG ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 1.16. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $76.19 and a 200-day simple moving average of $80.60.

A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The industrial products company reported $0.82 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.82. A. O. Smith had a return on equity of 30.09% and a net margin of 14.41%. The company had revenue of $957.80 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $960.36 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.90 earnings per share.

A. O. Smith Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 31st were given a dividend of $0.34 per share. This represents a $1.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.88%. This is an increase from A. O. Smith’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, October 31st. A. O. Smith’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 35.79%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On A. O. Smith

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Legacy Capital Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in A. O. Smith during the second quarter worth approximately $228,000. Bank of Montreal Can boosted its position in shares of A. O. Smith by 37.6% in the second quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 185,768 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $15,409,000 after buying an additional 50,798 shares during the period. Sanctuary Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in A. O. Smith in the second quarter valued at approximately $1,372,000. FORA Capital LLC acquired a new stake in A. O. Smith during the 3rd quarter valued at $730,000. Finally, WealthPlan Investment Management LLC grew its stake in shares of A. O. Smith by 89.3% during the third quarter. WealthPlan Investment Management LLC now owns 36,206 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $3,252,000 after acquiring an additional 17,079 shares in the last quarter. 76.10% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About A. O. Smith

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.