Applied Industrial Technologies (NYSE:AIT) Issues Quarterly Earnings Results

Key Points

• Applied Industrial Technologies reported quarterly EPS of $2.97, beating analysts’ consensus estimate of $2.89 by $0.08. The company posted an 8.35% net margin and a 22.17% return on equity.
• AIT shares rose 2.7% to open at $325.46, while the company maintained relatively low leverage with a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14 and a current ratio of 2.58.
• Analysts remain broadly bullish: all seven tracked analysts rate the stock a Buy, with a consensus price target of $398.33; recent targets range as high as $420.

Applied Industrial Technologies (NYSE:AIT - Get Free Report) announced its earnings results on Tuesday. The industrial products company reported $2.97 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.89 by $0.08, Zacks reports. Applied Industrial Technologies had a net margin of 8.35% and a return on equity of 22.17%.

Applied Industrial Technologies Trading Up 2.7%

AIT opened at $325.46 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 2.58 and a quick ratio of 1.75. The company has a market cap of $11.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.54 and a beta of 0.85. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $332.15 and a 200 day simple moving average of $308.38. Applied Industrial Technologies has a fifty-two week low of $238.72 and a fifty-two week high of $374.80.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have commented on AIT. Oppenheimer increased their price objective on Applied Industrial Technologies from $350.00 to $390.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, August 14th. DA Davidson boosted their target price on Applied Industrial Technologies from $380.00 to $400.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, August 14th. Mizuho dropped their target price on Applied Industrial Technologies from $400.00 to $390.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 15th. Bank of America upped their price target on Applied Industrial Technologies from $380.00 to $390.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, August 14th. Finally, KeyCorp raised their price target on Applied Industrial Technologies from $375.00 to $420.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, August 14th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating. According to MarketBeat, Applied Industrial Technologies has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $398.33.

Insider Activity at Applied Industrial Technologies

In other Applied Industrial Technologies news, Director Peter Wallace sold 1,904 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $340.45, for a total value of $648,216.80. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 22,859 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,782,346.55. This trade represents a 7.69% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO David Wells sold 1,812 shares of Applied Industrial Technologies stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $355.10, for a total transaction of $643,441.20. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 32,050 shares of the company's stock, valued at $11,380,955. This represents a 5.35% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Corporate insiders own 1.60% of the company's stock.

About Applied Industrial Technologies

Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc NYSE: AIT is a distributor and value-added service provider of industrial motion, power transmission, fluid power, automation, and control products. Its offerings include bearings, mechanical power-transmission components, motors, gearboxes, hydraulic and pneumatic equipment, industrial hoses, process pumps, safety products, and related maintenance supplies.

The company also provides technical and engineering services designed to help customers improve equipment performance, reliability, and productivity.

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