A.O. Smith upgraded to Neutral from Sell at UBS

UBS analyst Damian Karas upgraded A.O. Smith (AOS) to Neutral from Sell with a price target of $80, up from $75. With the stock down 27% year-to-date, the firm sees a more balanced risk/reward, with the recent guidance cut “having adequately lowered investor expectations for China.” The shares are assigning little value to the rest-of-world business, where UBS is now incrementally positive on China government stimulus, notwithstanding a still challenging consumer and housing market backdrop, the analyst tells investors in a research note.