Equitable Trust Co. Grows Holdings in Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:AIT)

Equitable Trust Co. increased its holdings in Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:AIT) by 3.0% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 13,158 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 384 shares during the quarter. Equitable Trust Co.’s holdings in Applied Industrial Technologies were worth $2,965,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of AIT. Assetmark Inc. raised its stake in Applied Industrial Technologies by 60.3% during the first quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 7,005 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,579,000 after buying an additional 2,634 shares during the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers grew its stake in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies by 88.3% in the first quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 10,440 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,353,000 after acquiring an additional 4,896 shares during the last quarter. Abel Hall LLC bought a new position in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies during the first quarter valued at $205,000. Legato Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies by 45.6% in the 1st quarter. Legato Capital Management LLC now owns 4,005 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $902,000 after purchasing an additional 1,255 shares during the last quarter. Finally, KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS raised its position in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies by 12.1% in the 1st quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS now owns 10,200 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,298,000 after purchasing an additional 1,100 shares during the last quarter. 93.52% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Applied Industrial Technologies Price Performance

AIT opened at $271.85 on Friday. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $238.77 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $238.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 2.51 and a current ratio of 3.57. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.29, a P/E/G ratio of 3.26 and a beta of 0.91. Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. has a 52-week low of $188.71 and a 52-week high of $282.98.

Applied Industrial Technologies (NYSE:AIT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The industrial products company reported $2.57 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.40 by $0.17. Applied Industrial Technologies had a net margin of 8.64% and a return on equity of 22.01%. The firm had revenue of $1.17 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.17 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.48 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 1.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. will post 9.9 EPS for the current year.

Applied Industrial Technologies announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback program on Thursday, May 1st that permits the company to repurchase 1,500,000 shares. This repurchase authorization permits the industrial products company to reacquire shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Applied Industrial Technologies Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 29th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.46 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 15th. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.68%. Applied Industrial Technologies’s payout ratio is 18.47%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently commented on the stock. Loop Capital cut their price objective on shares of Applied Industrial Technologies from $320.00 to $290.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Raymond James Financial reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $250.00 price target (down previously from $265.00) on shares of Applied Industrial Technologies in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Applied Industrial Technologies from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $285.00.

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.