Thrivent Financial for Lutherans Purchases 185,553 Shares of Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. $AIT

Key Points

• Thrivent Financial for Lutherans sharply increased its stake in Applied Industrial Technologies, buying 185,553 additional shares in the fourth quarter and lifting its holdings to 196,946 shares worth about $50.6 million.
• Wall Street sentiment remains mostly positive: several analysts raised price targets, and the stock currently carries a Moderate Buy consensus with an average target of $313.67.
• Applied Industrial Technologies reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings and revenue, and it also announced a quarterly dividend of $0.51 per share, payable May 29.

Thrivent Financial for Lutherans raised its position in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:AIT - Free Report) by 1,628.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 196,946 shares of the industrial products company's stock after purchasing an additional 185,553 shares during the quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans owned 0.53% of Applied Industrial Technologies worth $50,570,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. US Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies by 3.3% during the 4th quarter. US Asset Management LLC now owns 1,266 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $325,000 after acquiring an additional 41 shares during the period. Jones Financial Companies Lllp grew its stake in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies by 3.3% during the 3rd quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 1,410 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $369,000 after acquiring an additional 45 shares during the period. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. grew its stake in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies by 7.4% during the 3rd quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 653 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $170,000 after acquiring an additional 45 shares during the period. Quadrant Capital Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies by 1.1% during the 3rd quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 4,631 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,209,000 after acquiring an additional 51 shares during the period. Finally, Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ grew its stake in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies by 11.9% during the 3rd quarter. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ now owns 516 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $135,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares during the period. 93.52% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

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

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Warren E. Hoffner III sold 8,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 5th. The stock was 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 $12,471,436.04. This represents a 16.41% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 1.60% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Applied Industrial Technologies Stock Down 2.6%

NYSE AIT opened at $307.46 on Friday. The stock's 50 day moving average is $282.03 and its 200 day moving average is $271.85. The company has a current ratio of 2.95, a quick ratio of 1.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19. Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. has a 12 month low of $218.48 and a 12 month high of $317.10. The stock has a market cap of $11.36 billion, a PE ratio of 29.03, a P/E/G ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 0.86.

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

Applied Industrial Technologies Announces Dividend

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

Applied Industrial Technologies Profile

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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