Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:AIT) Shares Sold by Ensign Peak Advisors Inc

Ensign Peak Advisors Inc trimmed its position in Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:AIT - Free Report) by 11.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 18,333 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 2,279 shares during the quarter. Ensign Peak Advisors Inc's holdings in Applied Industrial Technologies were worth $4,390,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Larson Financial Group LLC raised its position in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies by 5,900.0% during the 4th quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 120 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 118 shares during the period. Kestra Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Applied Industrial Technologies in the 4th quarter worth $30,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in Applied Industrial Technologies during the fourth quarter valued at about $44,000. Huntington National Bank raised its holdings in Applied Industrial Technologies by 33.8% during the fourth quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 186 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $45,000 after acquiring an additional 47 shares during the period. Finally, Parkside Financial Bank & Trust lifted its position in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies by 25.3% in the fourth quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 203 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $49,000 after acquiring an additional 41 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.52% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have commented on AIT. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on shares of Applied Industrial Technologies from $250.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. KeyCorp reduced their target price on Applied Industrial Technologies from $325.00 to $275.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 17th. Loop Capital dropped their price target on Applied Industrial Technologies from $320.00 to $290.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 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 research note on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, StockNews.com cut Applied Industrial Technologies from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $285.00.

Applied Industrial Technologies Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE AIT traded down $1.83 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $231.47. The stock had a trading volume of 38,809 shares, compared to its average volume of 378,128. The company has a 50 day moving average of $226.61 and a two-hundred day moving average of $245.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 2.55 and a current ratio of 3.76. The firm has a market cap of $8.82 billion, a PE ratio of 23.45, a PEG ratio of 3.14 and a beta of 1.00. Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. has a twelve month low of $181.35 and a twelve month high of $282.98.

Applied Industrial Technologies (NYSE:AIT - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The industrial products company reported $2.57 EPS 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 firm had revenue of $1.17 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.17 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.48 earnings per share. Applied Industrial Technologies's revenue for the quarter was up 1.8% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. will post 9.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Applied Industrial Technologies Announces Dividend

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 $0.46 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 15th. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.79%. Applied Industrial Technologies's payout ratio is currently 18.47%.

Applied Industrial Technologies announced that its board has approved a stock repurchase plan on Thursday, May 1st that allows the company to repurchase 1,500,000 outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the industrial products company to repurchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company's board 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.