Palisade Capital Management LP Sells 2,100 Shares of Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:AIT)

Palisade Capital Management LP cut its position in Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:AIT - Free Report) by 0.9% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 237,520 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 2,100 shares during the quarter. Applied Industrial Technologies accounts for 1.5% of Palisade Capital Management LP's holdings, making the stock its 4th largest holding. Palisade Capital Management LP owned approximately 0.62% of Applied Industrial Technologies worth $53,523,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies by 1.2% in the first quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 144,414 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $32,542,000 after buying an additional 1,656 shares in the last quarter. Meritage Portfolio Management boosted its holdings in Applied Industrial Technologies by 5.6% in the first quarter. Meritage Portfolio Management now owns 4,440 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,001,000 after purchasing an additional 234 shares during the period. First Horizon Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in Applied Industrial Technologies by 31.1% in the first quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 215 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $48,000 after purchasing an additional 51 shares during the period. WCM Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in Applied Industrial Technologies by 9.5% in the first quarter. WCM Investment Management LLC now owns 92,155 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $20,784,000 after purchasing an additional 8,006 shares during the period. Finally, KBC Group NV boosted its holdings in Applied Industrial Technologies by 13.9% in the first quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,754 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $395,000 after purchasing an additional 214 shares during the period. 93.52% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Applied Industrial Technologies Stock Up 0.1%

NYSE AIT traded up $0.29 during trading on Friday, reaching $245.48. 307,741 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 346,780. The stock has a market cap of $9.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 0.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 2.51 and a current ratio of 3.57. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $230.22 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $237.28. Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. has a 1 year low of $182.21 and a 1 year high of $282.98.

Applied Industrial Technologies (NYSE:AIT - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The industrial products company reported $2.57 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.40 by $0.17. Applied Industrial Technologies had a return on equity of 22.01% and a net margin of 8.64%. The business had revenue of $1.17 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.17 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.48 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 1.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. will post 9.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Applied Industrial Technologies announced that its board has authorized a stock buyback plan on Thursday, May 1st that permits the company to repurchase 1,500,000 shares. This repurchase authorization permits the industrial products company to repurchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often a sign that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

Applied Industrial Technologies Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 29th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 15th will be issued a $0.46 dividend. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.75%. 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 recent research reports. KeyCorp decreased their target price on Applied Industrial Technologies from $325.00 to $275.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 17th. Loop Capital decreased their target price on Applied Industrial Technologies from $320.00 to $290.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Applied Industrial Technologies from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Sunday, June 22nd. Finally, Raymond James Financial reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $250.00 target price (down from $265.00) on shares of Applied Industrial Technologies in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Applied Industrial Technologies has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $285.00.

Applied Industrial Technologies 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.