Fiera Capital Corp Lowers Stake in Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:AIT)

Fiera Capital Corp cut its position in Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:AIT) by 2.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 127,690 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 3,205 shares during the period. Fiera Capital Corp owned about 0.33% of Applied Industrial Technologies worth $30,578,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of AIT. Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI bought a new position in Applied Industrial Technologies in the 3rd quarter worth $84,139,000. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP purchased a new position in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies in the third quarter valued at about $32,233,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies in the third quarter worth about $213,590,000. Eagle Asset Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies during the third quarter worth about $13,034,000. Finally, Polar Asset Management Partners Inc. bought a new stake in Applied Industrial Technologies during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $12,897,000. 93.52% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Applied Industrial Technologies Stock Up 1.2 %

Shares of AIT opened at $263.25 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 2.55, a current ratio of 3.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The business has a fifty day moving average of $254.84 and a 200 day moving average of $236.77. The company has a market cap of $10.10 billion, a PE ratio of 26.67, a P/E/G ratio of 3.43 and a beta of 1.08. Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. has a 52-week low of $177.68 and a 52-week high of $282.98.

Applied Industrial Technologies (NYSE:AIT) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The industrial products company reported $2.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.21 by $0.18. Applied Industrial Technologies had a net margin of 8.62% and a return on equity of 22.37%. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. will post 9.87 EPS for the current year.

Applied Industrial Technologies Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.46 per share. This is a boost from Applied Industrial Technologies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.70%. Applied Industrial Technologies’s dividend payout ratio is currently 18.64%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have weighed in on the company. KeyCorp upped their price target on Applied Industrial Technologies from $275.00 to $325.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 3rd. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Applied Industrial Technologies from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Oppenheimer raised their target price on shares of Applied Industrial Technologies from $260.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. Mizuho started coverage on shares of Applied Industrial Technologies in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $285.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Bank of America upgraded Applied Industrial Technologies from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $285.00 to $315.00 in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $291.43.

Insider Transactions at Applied Industrial Technologies

In other news, VP Warren E. Hoffner III sold 4,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $281.64, for a total value of $1,126,560.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 55,709 shares in the company, valued at approximately $15,689,882.76. This represents a 6.70 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Mary Dean Hall sold 2,200 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $275.08, for a total transaction of $605,176.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 3,462 shares in the company, valued at approximately $952,326.96. This trade represents a 38.86 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 1.67% of the company’s stock.

Applied Industrial Technologies Company Profile

Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc distributes industrial motion, power, control, and automation technology solutions in North America, Australia, New Zealand, and Singapore. It operates in two segments, Service Center Based Distribution, and Engineered Solutions. The company distributes bearings, power transmission products, engineered fluid power components and systems, specialty flow control solutions, advanced automation products, industrial rubber products, linear motion components, automation solutions, tools, safety products, oilfield supplies, and other industrial and maintenance supplies; and motors, belting, drives, couplings, pumps, hydraulic and pneumatic components, filtration supplies, valves, fittings, process instrumentation, actuators, and hoses, filtration supplies, as well as other related supplies for general operational needs of customers' machinery and equipment.