Brokerages Set Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:AIT) Target Price at $285.00

Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:AIT - Get Free Report) has been assigned an average rating of "Moderate Buy" from the eight brokerages that are covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation and seven have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year target price among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $285.00.

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Raymond James reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $250.00 price target (down previously from $265.00) on shares of Applied Industrial Technologies in a report on Friday, May 2nd. StockNews.com lowered Applied Industrial Technologies from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Loop Capital reduced their price objective on Applied Industrial Technologies from $320.00 to $290.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on Applied Industrial Technologies from $250.00 to $275.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, KeyCorp reduced their target price on shares of Applied Industrial Technologies from $325.00 to $275.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 17th.

Applied Industrial Technologies Trading Down 1.0 %

AIT traded down $2.11 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $219.92. 295,912 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 299,886. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.28, a PEG ratio of 3.14 and a beta of 1.00. Applied Industrial Technologies has a one year low of $181.35 and a one year high of $282.98. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $226.33 and its 200 day simple moving average is $245.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 2.55 and a current ratio of 3.76.

Applied Industrial Technologies (NYSE:AIT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The industrial products company reported $2.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.40 by $0.17. The company had revenue of $1.17 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.17 billion. Applied Industrial Technologies had a net margin of 8.62% and a return on equity of 22.37%. The firm's revenue was up 1.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.48 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Applied Industrial Technologies will post 9.9 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Industrial Technologies announced that its board has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Thursday, May 1st that allows the company to repurchase 1,500,000 outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the industrial products company to reacquire shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Applied Industrial Technologies Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 30th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 15th will be paid a $0.46 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 15th. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.84%. Applied Industrial Technologies's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 18.47%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Baird Financial Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Applied Industrial Technologies by 2.5% during the 4th quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,588 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $380,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares during the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System lifted its stake in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 11,156 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $2,672,000 after buying an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust boosted its holdings in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies by 25.3% during the 4th quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 203 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $49,000 after buying an additional 41 shares during the period. OneAscent Financial Services LLC grew its stake in 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 buying an additional 41 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB raised its holdings in Applied Industrial Technologies by 51.2% in the 1st quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 130 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 44 shares during the period. 93.52% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Applied Industrial Technologies

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.