Is A. O. Smith Corporation (NYSE:AOS) Potentially Undervalued?

Today we're going to take a look at the well-established A. O. Smith Corporation (NYSE:AOS). The company's stock received a lot of attention from a substantial price movement on the NYSE over the last few months, increasing to US$89.88 at one point, and dropping to the lows of US$80.88. Some share price movements can give investors a better opportunity to enter into the stock, and potentially buy at a lower price. A question to answer is whether A. O. Smith's current trading price of US$80.88 reflective of the actual value of the large-cap? Or is it currently undervalued, providing us with the opportunity to buy? Let’s take a look at A. O. Smith’s outlook and value based on the most recent financial data to see if there are any catalysts for a price change.

View our latest analysis for A. O. Smith

Is A. O. Smith Still Cheap?

The stock seems fairly valued at the moment according to our valuation model. It’s trading around 11% below our intrinsic value, which means if you buy A. O. Smith today, you’d be paying a fair price for it. And if you believe that the stock is really worth $90.85, then there’s not much of an upside to gain from mispricing. Is there another opportunity to buy low in the future? Since A. O. Smith’s share price is quite volatile, we could potentially see it sink lower (or rise higher) in the future, giving us another chance to buy. This is based on its high beta, which is a good indicator for how much the stock moves relative to the rest of the market.

Can we expect growth from A. O. Smith?

Investors looking for growth in their portfolio may want to consider the prospects of a company before buying its shares. Although value investors would argue that it’s the intrinsic value relative to the price that matter the most, a more compelling investment thesis would be high growth potential at a cheap price. A. O. Smith's earnings growth are expected to be in the teens in the upcoming years, indicating a solid future ahead. This should lead to robust cash flows, feeding into a higher share value.

What This Means For You

Are you a shareholder? It seems like the market has already priced in AOS’s positive outlook, with shares trading around its fair value. However, there are also other important factors which we haven’t considered today, such as the financial strength of the company. Have these factors changed since the last time you looked at the stock? Will you have enough conviction to buy should the price fluctuates below the true value?

Are you a potential investor? If you’ve been keeping an eye on AOS, now may not be the most advantageous time to buy, given it is trading around its fair value. However, the positive outlook is encouraging for the company, which means it’s worth diving deeper into other factors such as the strength of its balance sheet, in order to take advantage of the next price drop.

It can be quite valuable to consider what analysts expect for A. O. Smith from their most recent forecasts. So feel free to check out our free graph representing analyst forecasts.

If you are no longer interested in A. O. Smith, you can use our free platform to see our list of over 50 other stocks with a high growth potential.

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This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.