Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:AIT) Given Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:AIT) have been given a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the eight brokerages that are covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 1 year price target among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $284.29.

A number of research analysts have weighed in on AIT shares. Bank of America upgraded shares of Applied Industrial Technologies from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $285.00 to $315.00 in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on shares of Applied Industrial Technologies from $250.00 to $275.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. KeyCorp dropped their target price on shares of Applied Industrial Technologies from $325.00 to $275.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, March 17th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Applied Industrial Technologies from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Raymond James reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $265.00 target price (up previously from $250.00) on shares of Applied Industrial Technologies in a research report on Thursday, January 30th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Applied Industrial Technologies

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of AIT. Baird Financial Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies by 2.5% in the 4th quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,588 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $380,000 after acquiring an additional 39 shares during the period. Arizona State Retirement System raised its stake in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 11,156 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,672,000 after acquiring an additional 40 shares during the period. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust raised its stake in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies by 25.3% in the 4th quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 203 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $49,000 after acquiring an additional 41 shares during the period. OneAscent Financial Services LLC raised its stake in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies by 4.1% in the 4th quarter. OneAscent Financial Services LLC now owns 1,038 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $249,000 after acquiring an additional 41 shares during the period. Finally, Huntington National Bank raised its stake in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies by 33.8% in the 4th quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 186 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $45,000 after acquiring an additional 47 shares during the period. 93.52% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Applied Industrial Technologies Trading Down 1.6 %

NYSE:AIT opened at $224.83 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 3.76, a quick ratio of 2.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $248.92 and a 200-day simple moving average of $243.65. Applied Industrial Technologies has a 12 month low of $177.68 and a 12 month high of $282.98. The company has a market capitalization of $8.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.78, a PEG ratio of 3.14 and a beta of 1.08.

Applied Industrial Technologies (NYSE:AIT) last issued 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, equities research analysts anticipate that Applied Industrial Technologies will post 9.9 earnings per share for the current year.

Applied Industrial Technologies Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th were issued a $0.46 dividend. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.82%. 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 presently 18.64%.

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.