9,100 Shares in Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:AIT) Purchased by KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS

KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:AIT) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm purchased 9,100 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,179,000.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of AIT. Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies by 5,900.0% during the fourth quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 120 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 118 shares during the last quarter. Kestra Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Applied Industrial Technologies during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $30,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in Applied Industrial Technologies during the fourth quarter valued at $44,000. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust boosted its holdings in Applied Industrial Technologies by 25.3% in the fourth quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 203 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $49,000 after acquiring an additional 41 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Millburn Ridgefield Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies in the third quarter worth $84,000. Institutional investors own 93.52% of the company’s stock.

Applied Industrial Technologies Price Performance

NYSE AIT opened at $232.79 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.59, a PEG ratio of 3.14 and a beta of 1.08. Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. has a 1-year low of $177.68 and a 1-year high of $282.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 3.76 and a quick ratio of 2.55. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $247.48 and its 200-day moving average price is $244.70.

Applied Industrial Technologies (NYSE:AIT) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The industrial products company reported $2.39 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.21 by $0.18. Applied Industrial Technologies had a return on equity of 22.37% and a net margin of 8.62%. On average, equities analysts predict that Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. will post 9.9 earnings per share for the current year.

Applied Industrial Technologies Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 28th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th were given a dividend of $0.46 per share. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.79%. This is a positive change from Applied Industrial Technologies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 14th. Applied Industrial Technologies’s payout ratio is 18.64%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on AIT. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on shares of Applied Industrial Technologies from $250.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Applied Industrial Technologies from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Raymond James reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $265.00 price target (up previously from $250.00) on shares of Applied Industrial Technologies in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, KeyCorp cut their target price on Applied Industrial Technologies from $325.00 to $275.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 17th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $284.29.

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.