Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. Cuts Position in Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:AIT)

Key Points

• Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. reduced its stake in Applied Industrial Technologies by 0.9%, holding approximately 1.48% of the company, worth $127.56 million after selling 5,188 shares in the first quarter.
• Applied Industrial Technologies announced a stock buyback program authorizing the repurchase of 1.5 million shares, indicating management's belief that the stock is undervalued.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.46, with an annualized yield of 0.7%, reflecting a payout ratio of 18.47%.

Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. cut its stake in Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:AIT - Free Report) by 0.9% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 566,087 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 5,188 shares during the quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. owned about 1.48% of Applied Industrial Technologies worth $127,562,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB boosted its position in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies by 51.2% in the 1st quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 130 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares in the last quarter. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC boosted its position in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies by 97.5% in the 1st quarter. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC now owns 160 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 79 shares in the last quarter. Wayfinding Financial LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies in the 1st quarter worth $38,000. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies in the 1st quarter worth $41,000. Finally, First Horizon Advisors Inc. boosted its position in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies by 31.1% in the 1st quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 215 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $48,000 after purchasing an additional 51 shares in 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 traded down $14.49 on Friday, hitting $258.09. The company had a trading volume of 255,680 shares, compared to its average volume of 410,663. The firm has a market cap of $9.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.36 and a beta of 0.94. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $250.55 and a 200-day moving average price of $240.33. The company has a quick ratio of 2.51, a current ratio of 3.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31. Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. has a twelve month low of $191.31 and a twelve month high of $282.98.

Applied Industrial Technologies (NYSE:AIT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 14th. The industrial products company reported $2.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.60 by $0.20. The business had revenue of $1.22 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.18 billion. Applied Industrial Technologies had a return on equity of 22.01% and a net margin of 8.64%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.64 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. will post 9.9 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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

Applied Industrial Technologies Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 29th. Investors of record on Friday, August 15th will be paid a $0.46 dividend. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 15th. Applied Industrial Technologies's payout ratio is currently 18.47%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AIT has been the subject of a number of research reports. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on Applied Industrial Technologies from $265.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday. Wall Street Zen raised Applied Industrial Technologies from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, July 26th. Raymond James Financial cut Applied Industrial Technologies from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research report on Friday. Loop Capital lowered their price target 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. Finally, Oppenheimer lifted their price target on Applied Industrial Technologies from $290.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Applied Industrial Technologies currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $287.86.

About Applied Industrial Technologies

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.