Applied Industrial Technologies (NYSE:AIT) Rating Lowered to "Hold" at Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen downgraded Applied Industrial Technologies (NYSE:AIT) from a "buy" to a "hold," though the sell-side consensus remains a Moderate Buy with an average price target of $313.67 (five buys, one hold).
• Applied Industrial beat Q1 estimates with EPS of $2.65 (vs. $2.63 expected) and revenue of $1.25 billion (up 7.3% YoY), and issued FY 2026 guidance of 10.640–10.750 EPS and Q4 2026 guidance of 2.850–2.960 EPS.
• Insiders have sold roughly 28,654 shares worth about $8.21 million in the past 90 days (insiders own 1.60%), while institutional investors hold approximately 93.52% of the company.

Applied Industrial Technologies (NYSE:AIT - Get Free Report) was downgraded by equities research analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report released on Saturday.

AIT has been the subject of a number of other reports. Oppenheimer raised their price target on Applied Industrial Technologies from $300.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Applied Industrial Technologies in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Robert W. Baird set a $317.00 target price on shares of Applied Industrial Technologies in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, KeyCorp boosted their target price on shares of Applied Industrial Technologies from $300.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 26th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $313.67.

Applied Industrial Technologies Trading Down 0.9%

NYSE AIT opened at $302.85 on Friday. Applied Industrial Technologies has a 1-year low of $213.78 and a 1-year high of $309.67. The company has a current ratio of 2.95, a quick ratio of 2.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19. The company has a market capitalization of $11.19 billion, a PE ratio of 28.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.91 and a beta of 0.86. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $276.67 and its 200-day simple moving average is $268.04.

Applied Industrial Technologies (NYSE:AIT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 28th. The industrial products company reported $2.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.63 by $0.02. Applied Industrial Technologies had a return on equity of 21.64% and a net margin of 8.34%.The firm had revenue of $1.25 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.23 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.57 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 7.3% on a year-over-year basis. Applied Industrial Technologies has set its Q4 2026 guidance at 2.850-2.960 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 10.640-10.750 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Applied Industrial Technologies will post 10.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Applied Industrial Technologies

In other Applied Industrial Technologies news, VP Jason W. Vasquez sold 5,447 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $287.87, for a total transaction of $1,568,027.89. Following the transaction, the vice president owned 14,491 shares in the company, valued at $4,171,524.17. This trade represents a 27.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP Warren E. Hoffner III sold 4,000 shares of Applied Industrial Technologies stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $288.62, for a total transaction of $1,154,480.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president directly owned 52,751 shares in the company, valued at approximately $15,224,993.62. This represents a 7.05% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 28,654 shares of company stock valued at $8,212,829. Corporate insiders own 1.60% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Applied Industrial Technologies by 4.1% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 381,187 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $85,897,000 after acquiring an additional 14,926 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC bought a new position in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies in the first quarter worth about $318,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC lifted its position in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies by 12.4% during the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 98,348 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $22,162,000 after purchasing an additional 10,863 shares during the last quarter. Focus Partners Wealth lifted its position in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies by 4.5% during the 1st quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 1,341 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $302,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. Finally, M&T Bank Corp bought a new stake in Applied Industrial Technologies during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $217,000. Institutional investors own 93.52% of the company's stock.

Applied Industrial Technologies Company Profile

Applied Industrial Technologies, listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol AIT, is a leading distributor of industrial products and services. The company offers a comprehensive range of bearings, power transmission components, fluid power products, industrial rubber products, and automation solutions. Through its network of distribution centers and branch locations, Applied Industrial Technologies serves diverse end markets including manufacturing, oil and gas, mining, food and beverage, and wastewater treatment.

Founded in 1923 and headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio, Applied Industrial Technologies has grown through a combination of organic expansion and strategic acquisitions.

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