A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS) Receives “Underweight” Rating from JPMorgan Chase & Co.

A. O. Smith (NYSE:AOS)‘s stock had its “underweight” rating reissued by research analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. in a research note issued to investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a $60.00 target price on the industrial products company’s stock, down from their previous target price of $65.00. JPMorgan Chase & Co.‘s price objective would indicate a potential upside of 3.62% from the stock’s current price.

Several other equities analysts have also recently commented on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price objective on shares of A. O. Smith from $69.00 to $61.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 13th. Zacks Research cut shares of A. O. Smith from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. DA Davidson set a $67.00 price objective on shares of A. O. Smith and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of A. O. Smith from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 14th. Finally, Oppenheimer reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $80.00 price target on shares of A. O. Smith in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $69.89.

A. O. Smith Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:AOS opened at $57.91 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $64.74 and a 200 day moving average of $68.37. The stock has a market cap of $7.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.40, a P/E/G ratio of 1.26 and a beta of 1.23. A. O. Smith has a 12 month low of $56.77 and a 12 month high of $81.86. The company has a current ratio of 1.56, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31.

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In other A. O. Smith news, SVP Darrell W. Schuh sold 1,104 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $74.39, for a total value of $82,126.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 2,201 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $163,732.39. The trade was a 33.40% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.50% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On A. O. Smith

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Prospera Financial Services Inc grew its stake in A. O. Smith by 4.0% in the 4th quarter. Prospera Financial Services Inc now owns 3,261 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $218,000 after buying an additional 126 shares in the last quarter. Grey Ledge Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of A. O. Smith by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. Grey Ledge Advisors LLC now owns 8,966 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $600,000 after purchasing an additional 128 shares in the last quarter. Eukles Asset Management boosted its stake in shares of A. O. Smith by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Eukles Asset Management now owns 29,240 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,956,000 after purchasing an additional 151 shares in the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of A. O. Smith by 31.8% in the 4th quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 642 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $43,000 after purchasing an additional 155 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Founders Financial Alliance LLC boosted its stake in shares of A. O. Smith by 2.8% in the 4th quarter. Founders Financial Alliance LLC now owns 5,607 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $375,000 after purchasing an additional 155 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.10% of the company’s stock.

A. O. Smith Company Profile

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.