SG Americas Securities LLC Makes New Investment in Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:AIT)

SG Americas Securities LLC bought a new stake in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:AIT - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 3,468 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $781,000.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions 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 buying an additional 118 shares in the last quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB raised its position in 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 during the period. Kestra Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Applied Industrial Technologies in the 4th quarter worth about $30,000. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC raised its position in 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 during the period. Finally, SBI Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in Applied Industrial Technologies in the 4th quarter worth about $44,000. 93.52% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Applied Industrial Technologies Stock Up 2.1%

Applied Industrial Technologies stock traded up $4.74 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $231.93. 359,473 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 312,699. 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 firm has a market cap of $8.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.29, a PEG ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 0.93. The business has a fifty day moving average of $227.99 and a 200 day moving average of $238.99. Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. has a 12-month low of $182.21 and a 12-month high of $282.98.

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

Applied Industrial Technologies Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 30th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 15th were given a dividend of $0.46 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 15th. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.79%. Applied Industrial Technologies's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 18.47%.

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently weighed in on AIT shares. KeyCorp reduced their price objective on shares of Applied Industrial Technologies from $325.00 to $275.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, March 17th. Raymond James Financial reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $250.00 price objective (down from $265.00) on shares of Applied Industrial Technologies in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Applied Industrial Technologies from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Sunday. Finally, Loop Capital dropped their target price on shares of Applied Industrial Technologies from $320.00 to $290.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $285.00.

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.