Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:AIT) Shares Sold by Balyasny Asset Management L.P.

Balyasny Asset Management L.P. lessened its stake in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:AIT - Free Report) by 90.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,948 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 19,040 shares during the quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P.'s holdings in Applied Industrial Technologies were worth $466,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of AIT. Invesco Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies by 7.2% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,271,356 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $304,452,000 after buying an additional 85,270 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Applied Industrial Technologies by 2.0% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,061,231 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $254,182,000 after acquiring an additional 20,842 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in Applied Industrial Technologies by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 571,275 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $136,803,000 after acquiring an additional 1,958 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $129,690,000. Finally, Northern Trust Corp increased its holdings in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies by 12.5% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 510,772 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $122,315,000 after purchasing an additional 56,732 shares during the period. 93.52% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Applied Industrial Technologies Price Performance

NYSE AIT traded down $4.37 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $228.92. The stock had a trading volume of 356,976 shares, compared to its average volume of 307,751. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $226.61 and a 200 day simple moving average of $245.96. The company has a market cap of $8.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.19, a P/E/G ratio of 3.14 and a beta of 1.00. Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. has a 52-week low of $181.35 and a 52-week high of $282.98. The company has a quick ratio of 2.55, a current ratio of 3.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32.

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 for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.40 by $0.17. Applied Industrial Technologies had a return on equity of 22.37% and a net margin of 8.62%. The business had revenue of $1.17 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.17 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.48 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 1.8% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. will post 9.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Applied Industrial Technologies Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 30th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.46 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 15th. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.80%. Applied Industrial Technologies's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 18.47%.

Applied Industrial Technologies announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase plan on Thursday, May 1st that authorizes the company to buyback 1,500,000 outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the industrial products company to reacquire shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally an indication that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective 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. Loop Capital lowered their target price on shares of Applied Industrial Technologies from $320.00 to $290.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 17th. KeyCorp dropped their price target on shares of Applied Industrial Technologies from $325.00 to $275.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 17th. Raymond James reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $250.00 price objective (down previously from $265.00) on shares of Applied Industrial Technologies in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Applied Industrial Technologies from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $285.00.

Applied Industrial Technologies 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.