TimesSquare Capital Management LLC Grows Position in Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. $AIT

Key Points

• TimesSquare Capital Management increased its stake in Applied Industrial Technologies by 24.7% in the fourth quarter, bringing its holdings to 120,716 shares valued at about $31 million.
• Wall Street sentiment remains broadly positive, with five analysts rating AIT a Buy and one a Hold; the consensus target price is $313.67, while some firms have raised their price objectives as high as $350.
• Applied Industrial Technologies reported better-than-expected quarterly results, posting EPS of $2.65 on revenue of $1.25 billion, and it also announced a quarterly dividend of $0.51 per share.

TimesSquare Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:AIT - Free Report) by 24.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 120,716 shares of the industrial products company's stock after buying an additional 23,941 shares during the period. TimesSquare Capital Management LLC owned approximately 0.32% of Applied Industrial Technologies worth $30,996,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Torren Management LLC bought a new position in Applied Industrial Technologies during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its position in Applied Industrial Technologies by 890.0% during the 3rd quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 99 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 89 shares in the last quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC bought a new position in Applied Industrial Technologies during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Applied Industrial Technologies during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Finally, V Square Quantitative Management LLC bought a new position in Applied Industrial Technologies during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Institutional investors own 93.52% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

Insider Activity at Applied Industrial Technologies

In other Applied Industrial Technologies news, VP Warren E. Hoffner III sold 8,000 shares of Applied Industrial Technologies stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $306.04, for a total value of $2,448,320.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 40,751 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $12,471,436.04. This trade represents a 16.41% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 1.60% of the company's stock.

Applied Industrial Technologies Stock Down 0.8%

Applied Industrial Technologies stock opened at $304.83 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $11.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.78, a PEG ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 0.86. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $282.64 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $272.25. Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. has a 12 month low of $218.48 and a 12 month high of $317.10. 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 (NYSE:AIT - Get Free Report) last posted its 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. The business had revenue of $1.25 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.23 billion. Applied Industrial Technologies had a return on equity of 21.64% and a net margin of 8.34%.The company's quarterly revenue was up 7.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company 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. Equities analysts predict that Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. will post 10.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Applied Industrial Technologies Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 29th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 15th will be issued 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 (DPR) is presently 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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding AIT? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:AIT - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.