Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:AIT) Receives Average Recommendation of "Buy" from Brokerages

Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:AIT - Get Free Report) has been given an average rating of "Buy" by the seven ratings firms that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a buy recommendation. The average 1-year price target among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $285.00.

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Applied Industrial Technologies from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday. Raymond James Financial reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $250.00 price objective (down from $265.00) on shares of Applied Industrial Technologies in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Loop Capital dropped their target price 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.

Institutional Trading of Applied Industrial Technologies

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in AIT. Mountain Pacific Investment Advisers LLC grew its stake in Applied Industrial Technologies by 0.7% in the second quarter. Mountain Pacific Investment Advisers LLC now owns 61,137 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $14,211,000 after purchasing an additional 427 shares during the period. Liberty Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in Applied Industrial Technologies during the second quarter worth about $8,059,000. Truist Financial Corp grew its stake in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies by 216.8% in the 2nd quarter. Truist Financial Corp now owns 11,148 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $2,591,000 after buying an additional 7,629 shares during the last quarter. Ausbil Investment Management Ltd increased its position in Applied Industrial Technologies by 0.8% during the 2nd quarter. Ausbil Investment Management Ltd now owns 12,067 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $2,805,000 after buying an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio raised its stake in Applied Industrial Technologies by 919.7% during the second quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 13,103 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $3,046,000 after buying an additional 11,818 shares during the last quarter. 93.52% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Applied Industrial Technologies Stock Performance

Shares of AIT stock opened at $260.90 on Friday. Applied Industrial Technologies has a fifty-two week low of $188.71 and a fifty-two week high of $282.98. The stock's 50-day moving average is $235.40 and its two-hundred day moving average is $238.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 3.57 and a quick ratio of 2.51. The firm has a market cap of $9.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.19, a PEG ratio of 3.17 and a beta of 0.91.

Applied Industrial Technologies (NYSE:AIT - Get Free Report) last issued 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 for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.17 billion. Applied Industrial Technologies had a return on equity of 22.01% and a net margin of 8.64%. The firm's revenue was up 1.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.48 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Applied Industrial Technologies will post 9.9 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Industrial Technologies Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 29th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 15th will be given a dividend of $0.46 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 15th. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.71%. Applied Industrial Technologies's dividend payout ratio is currently 18.47%.

Applied Industrial Technologies declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback plan on Thursday, May 1st that permits the company to repurchase 1,500,000 shares. This repurchase authorization permits the industrial products company to repurchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often an indication that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

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.

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