Applied Industrial Technologies (NYSE:AIT) Upgraded by StockNews.com to Strong-Buy

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Applied Industrial Technologies (NYSE:AIT – Get Rating) from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday.

Several other brokerages have also commented on AIT. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on shares of Applied Industrial Technologies from $137.00 to $138.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research note on Tuesday. KeyCorp lifted their price target on shares of Applied Industrial Technologies from $130.00 to $138.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research note on Friday, October 28th.

Applied Industrial Technologies Price Performance

Shares of AIT opened at $122.28 on Tuesday. Applied Industrial Technologies has a twelve month low of $88.09 and a twelve month high of $133.74. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $126.37 and its 200-day simple moving average is $114.67. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.98 and a beta of 1.18. The company has a current ratio of 3.08, a quick ratio of 2.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53.

Applied Industrial Technologies (NYSE:AIT – Get Rating) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 27th. The industrial products company reported $1.97 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.64 by $0.33. Applied Industrial Technologies had a net margin of 7.07% and a return on equity of 25.06%. The business had revenue of $1.06 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $988.51 million. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.36 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 19.1% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that Applied Industrial Technologies will post 7.52 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Applied Industrial Technologies Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 15th were given a dividend of $0.34 per share. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.11%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 14th. Applied Industrial Technologies’s payout ratio is currently 18.89%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Ellevest Inc. grew its position in Applied Industrial Technologies by 30.7% during the 3rd quarter. Ellevest Inc. now owns 370 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 87 shares during the last quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors grew its position in Applied Industrial Technologies by 2.9% during the 2nd quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 3,404 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $327,000 after purchasing an additional 97 shares during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp grew its position in Applied Industrial Technologies by 9.9% during the 3rd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 1,114 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $114,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System grew its position in Applied Industrial Technologies by 0.9% during the 3rd quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System now owns 15,721 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,616,000 after purchasing an additional 143 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Commonwealth Equity Services LLC grew its position in Applied Industrial Technologies by 3.7% during the 2nd quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 4,636 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $445,000 after purchasing an additional 164 shares during the last quarter. 92.02% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Applied Industrial Technologies

(Get Rating)

Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc engages in the manufacture and distribution of industrial parts and products. It operates through the Service Center Based Distribution, and Fluid Power & Flow Control Business segments. The Service Center-Based Distribution segment provides customers with a wide range of industrial products through a network of service centers.