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  "documentTitle": "A.O. Smith Corporation (AOS)",
  "authorId": "54_Spruce_Point_Capital",
  "authorName": "Ben Axler",
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  "sourceTypeLabel": "Short seller",
  "presentationDate": "2019-05-16 00:00:00",
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      "text": "Sales in our Rest of World segment in 2016 were $100 million higher than sales of $866 million in 2015. Sales in China grew 12.5 percent in 2016. Excluding the impact from the appreciation of the U.S. dollar in 2016, sales in China increased 18.9 percent in 2016 driven by higher demand for water heaters, water treatment products and residential air purification products. Water treatment sales in China totaled $177 million in 2016 compared to $130 million in 2015. Sales of air purification products were $26 million in 2016 compared to $9 million in 2015.",
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      "text": "Sales in 2015 were $97.8 million higher than sales of $768.3 million in 2014 due to higher demand for water heaters, approximately $35 million of incremental sales of water treatment and approximately $9 million in sales of our newly launched in-home air purification products. Sales in China grew 13.7 percent in 2015. Excluding the impact from the appreciation of the U.S. dollar in 2015, sales in China increased 16.1 percent in 2015.",
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      "text": "Sales in our Rest of World segment in 2016 were $965.6 million or $99.5 million higher than sales of $866.1 million in 2015. Sales in China grew 12.5 percent in 2016. Excluding the impact from the appreciation of the U.S. dollar in 2016, sales in China increased 18.9 percent in 2016 driven by higher demand for water heaters, water treatment products and residential air purification products. A. O. Smith-branded water treatment sales in China totaled $148 million in 2016 compared to $110 million in 2015. Sales of in-home air purification products were $26 million in 2016 compared to $9 million in 2015.",
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      "text": "Sales in our Rest of World segment in 2017 were $1,116 million or $150 million higher than sales of $966 million in 2016. Sales in China grew 15.9 percent to over $1 billion in 2017 due to higher demand for our consumer products, led by water treatment and air purification products and pricing actions primarily due to higher steel and installation costs. Excluding the impact from the appreciation of the U.S. dollar in 2017, sales in China increased 17.9 percent. Water heater and water treatment sales in India increased $8 million, over 40 percent, in 2017 compared to 2016.",
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      "text": "AOS made subtle revisions to its disclosures about its China water treatment sales in 2017 related to 2016. Notice how they de-emphasis “A.O. Smith-branded” products. In its 2018 10-K, AOS completely stopped disclosing water treatment sales in China, instead pointing out India. Furthermore, AOS stopped discussing its China air purification products. It appears to be a failing product line quietly being disregarded.",
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