Lazard Asset Management LLC Has $4.01 Million Stock Position in Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:AIT)

Lazard Asset Management LLC increased its position in Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:AIT - Free Report) by 953.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 16,766 shares of the industrial products company's stock after purchasing an additional 15,174 shares during the quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC's holdings in Applied Industrial Technologies were worth $4,014,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Larson Financial Group LLC raised its stake in Applied Industrial Technologies by 5,900.0% during the fourth quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 120 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 118 shares in the last quarter. Kestra Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies during the fourth quarter valued at $30,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies during the fourth quarter valued at $44,000. Huntington National Bank lifted its holdings in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies by 33.8% during the fourth quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 186 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $45,000 after acquiring an additional 47 shares during the period. Finally, Parkside Financial Bank & Trust lifted its holdings in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies by 25.3% during the fourth quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 203 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $49,000 after acquiring an additional 41 shares during the period. 93.52% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Applied Industrial Technologies Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:AIT traded down $2.34 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $227.08. The company's stock had a trading volume of 42,114 shares, compared to its average volume of 307,155. Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $181.35 and a fifty-two week high of $282.98. The company has a market capitalization of $8.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.94, a P/E/G ratio of 3.14 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 3.76 and a quick ratio of 2.55. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $226.82 and its 200-day simple moving average is $245.85.

Applied Industrial Technologies (NYSE:AIT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The industrial products company reported $2.57 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.40 by $0.17. The firm had revenue of $1.17 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.17 billion. Applied Industrial Technologies had a return on equity of 22.37% and a net margin of 8.62%. The company's revenue was up 1.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.48 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. will post 9.9 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 30th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 15th will be given a $0.46 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 15th. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.81%. Applied Industrial Technologies's payout ratio is 18.47%.

Applied Industrial Technologies announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback program 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. Stock repurchase programs are usually an indication that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AIT has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. KeyCorp cut their price objective 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 cut their price objective 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. Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on Applied Industrial Technologies from $250.00 to $275.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. StockNews.com lowered Applied Industrial Technologies from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Raymond James restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $250.00 target price (down from $265.00) on shares of Applied Industrial Technologies in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Applied Industrial Technologies currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target 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.