Handelsbanken Fonder AB Acquires 38,300 Shares of Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. $AIT

Key Points

• Handelsbanken Fonder AB increased its stake in Applied Industrial Technologies by 21% in the fourth quarter, buying 38,300 additional shares and bringing its total holding to 220,923 shares worth about $56.7 million.
• Applied Industrial Technologies reported better-than-expected quarterly results, with EPS of $2.65 and revenue of $1.25 billion, while also issuing Q4 2026 and FY 2026 guidance above current analyst expectations.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.51 per share, and analysts currently have a consensus rating of Moderate Buy with an average price target of $313.67.

Handelsbanken Fonder AB lifted its holdings in Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:AIT - Free Report) by 21.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 220,923 shares of the industrial products company's stock after acquiring an additional 38,300 shares during the quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB owned 0.59% of Applied Industrial Technologies worth $56,726,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. First Trust Advisors LP lifted its holdings in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies by 22.7% in the 3rd quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 933,067 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $243,577,000 after acquiring an additional 172,857 shares during the last quarter. Distillate Capital Partners LLC bought a new stake in Applied Industrial Technologies during the 3rd quarter valued at $13,281,000. Alps Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in Applied Industrial Technologies by 33.0% during the 3rd quarter. Alps Advisors Inc. now owns 32,824 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $8,569,000 after buying an additional 8,153 shares during the last quarter. Citigroup Inc. raised its holdings in Applied Industrial Technologies by 44.4% during the 3rd quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 30,319 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $7,915,000 after buying an additional 9,321 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AlphaQuest LLC raised its holdings in Applied Industrial Technologies by 210.3% during the 3rd quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 12,789 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $3,339,000 after buying an additional 8,668 shares during the last quarter. 93.52% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Applied Industrial Technologies

In related news, VP Warren E. Hoffner III sold 8,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $306.04, for a total transaction of $2,448,320.00. Following the sale, the vice president directly owned 40,751 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $12,471,436.04. This represents a 16.41% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 1.60% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on AIT shares. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Applied Industrial Technologies in a report on Friday, April 24th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Applied Industrial Technologies from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, May 2nd. Oppenheimer boosted their price objective on shares of Applied Industrial Technologies from $300.00 to $350.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. KeyCorp boosted their price objective on shares of Applied Industrial Technologies from $300.00 to $330.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 26th. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $317.00 price objective on shares of Applied Industrial Technologies in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $313.67.

Applied Industrial Technologies Stock Down 0.8%

NYSE:AIT opened at $304.83 on Tuesday. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $282.64 and its 200-day moving average price is $272.25. The company has a market capitalization of $11.27 billion, a PE ratio of 28.78, a P/E/G ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 0.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19, a current ratio of 2.95 and a quick ratio of 1.97. Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. has a 1-year low of $218.48 and a 1-year high of $317.10.

Applied Industrial Technologies (NYSE:AIT - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The industrial products company reported $2.65 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.63 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $1.25 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.23 billion. Applied Industrial Technologies had a net margin of 8.34% and a return on equity of 21.64%. The company's revenue was up 7.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.57 EPS. 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. On average, equities analysts predict that Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. will post 10.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Applied Industrial Technologies Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 29th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 15th will be given a $0.51 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 15th. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%. Applied Industrial Technologies's dividend payout ratio is currently 19.26%.

About Applied Industrial Technologies

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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