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

Key Points

• Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. has been given a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” by seven brokerages, with an average target price of $285.00 for the stock.
• Insider selling activity was noted, with VP Kurt W. Loring selling 8,523 shares and CEO Neil A. Schrimsher selling 26,671 shares, resulting in significant decreases in their ownership percentages.
• The company reported a quarterly EPS of $2.80, exceeding analyst expectations, and has forecasted its FY 2026 earnings to be between $10.000-10.75 EPS.

Shares of Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:AIT - Get Free Report) have received a consensus recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the seven brokerages that are covering the company, Marketbeat reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12 month target price among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $285.00.

A number of brokerages have recently commented on AIT. Raymond James Financial cut Applied Industrial Technologies from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research note on Friday, August 15th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Applied Industrial Technologies from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, July 26th. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on Applied Industrial Technologies from $265.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, August 15th. Industrial Alliance Securities set a $290.00 price target on Applied Industrial Technologies in a research note on Friday, August 22nd. Finally, Oppenheimer increased their price target on Applied Industrial Technologies from $290.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, August 15th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Kurt W. Loring sold 8,523 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, August 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $267.06, for a total transaction of $2,276,152.38. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president directly owned 19,273 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,147,047.38. This trade represents a 30.66% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Neil A. Schrimsher sold 26,671 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $262.46, for a total value of $7,000,070.66. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 149,735 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $39,299,448.10. This represents a 15.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 42,660 shares of company stock valued at $11,217,980 in the last three months. Insiders own 1.67% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of AIT. Bank of America Corp DE raised its position in Applied Industrial Technologies by 8.1% during the 4th quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 257,568 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $61,680,000 after purchasing an additional 19,304 shares during the last quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. grew 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 worth $380,000 after acquiring an additional 39 shares during the period. Ethic Inc. grew its holdings in Applied Industrial Technologies by 12.9% during the 4th quarter. Ethic Inc. now owns 2,047 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $490,000 after acquiring an additional 234 shares during the period. Focus Partners Wealth acquired a new stake in Applied Industrial Technologies during the 4th quarter worth about $307,000. Finally, Gotham Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in Applied Industrial Technologies by 120.2% during the 4th quarter. Gotham Asset Management LLC now owns 3,950 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $946,000 after acquiring an additional 2,156 shares during the period. 93.52% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Applied Industrial Technologies Trading Down 1.1%

Shares of AIT stock opened at $265.14 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 3.32, a quick ratio of 2.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31. The stock has a market cap of $10.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.80 and a beta of 1.00. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $261.42 and a 200 day simple moving average of $240.17. Applied Industrial Technologies has a 1 year low of $191.31 and a 1 year high of $282.98.

Applied Industrial Technologies (NYSE:AIT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 14th. The industrial products company reported $2.80 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.60 by $0.20. Applied Industrial Technologies had a return on equity of 21.78% and a net margin of 8.61%.The company had revenue of $1.22 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.18 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.64 EPS. Applied Industrial Technologies's revenue was up 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Applied Industrial Technologies has set its FY 2026 guidance at 10.000-10.75 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Applied Industrial Technologies will post 9.9 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Industrial Technologies Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 29th. Investors of record on Friday, August 15th were given a dividend of $0.46 per share. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 15th. Applied Industrial Technologies's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 18.18%.

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.