Sapient Capital LLC Takes Position in Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:AIT)

Sapient Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:AIT) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 1,702 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $294,000.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Huntington National Bank raised its position in Applied Industrial Technologies by 963.2% in the third quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 202 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 183 shares during the period. NBC Securities Inc. acquired a new position in Applied Industrial Technologies in the third quarter valued at about $40,000. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new position in Applied Industrial Technologies during the fourth quarter worth about $54,000. GAMMA Investing LLC purchased a new position in Applied Industrial Technologies during the fourth quarter worth about $86,000. Finally, Consolidated Planning Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies during the fourth quarter valued at about $209,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.52% of the company’s stock.

Applied Industrial Technologies Trading Up 2.0 %

Shares of AIT stock opened at $189.75 on Tuesday. Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $122.24 and a fifty-two week high of $201.76. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $189.54 and a 200 day moving average price of $176.73. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a quick ratio of 2.70 and a current ratio of 3.77.

Applied Industrial Technologies (NYSE:AIT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The industrial products company reported $2.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.40 by $0.08. Applied Industrial Technologies had a return on equity of 23.69% and a net margin of 8.36%. The business had revenue of $1.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.13 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.38 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. will post 9.6 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Applied Industrial Technologies Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 31st. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.37 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 14th. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.78%. Applied Industrial Technologies’s payout ratio is 15.51%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AIT has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Oppenheimer initiated coverage on shares of Applied Industrial Technologies in a research report on Tuesday, April 2nd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $235.00 price objective for the company. KeyCorp raised their price target on Applied Industrial Technologies from $195.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $201.00.

Applied Industrial Technologies Company 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.