Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:AIT) Stock Position Raised by New York State Common Retirement Fund

New York State Common Retirement Fund raised its position in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:AIT) by 10.0% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 159,047 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 14,426 shares during the period. New York State Common Retirement Fund’s holdings in Applied Industrial Technologies were worth $38,087,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in AIT. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. raised its stake in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies by 3.9% in the 3rd quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 1,143 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $255,000 after acquiring an additional 43 shares in the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its stake in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies by 16.8% in the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 382 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $91,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc raised its stake in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies by 5.6% in the 4th quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 1,206 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $289,000 after acquiring an additional 64 shares in the last quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies by 3.7% in the 3rd quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,924 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $429,000 after acquiring an additional 68 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ballentine Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies by 7.1% in the 3rd quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 1,111 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $248,000 after acquiring an additional 74 shares in the last quarter. 93.52% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Applied Industrial Technologies Stock Performance

AIT opened at $263.90 on Friday. Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. has a 12-month low of $177.68 and a 12-month high of $282.98. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.44 and a beta of 1.08. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $254.09 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $238.85. The company has a quick ratio of 2.55, a current ratio of 3.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32.

Applied Industrial Technologies (NYSE:AIT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The industrial products company reported $2.39 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.21 by $0.18. Applied Industrial Technologies had a return on equity of 22.37% and a net margin of 8.62%. On average, equities analysts forecast that Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. will post 9.87 earnings per share for the current year.

Applied Industrial Technologies Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be issued a dividend of $0.46 per share. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.70%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. This is a positive change from Applied Industrial Technologies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. Applied Industrial Technologies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 18.64%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on AIT. Loop Capital raised their price objective on Applied Industrial Technologies from $230.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, October 28th. Bank of America raised Applied Industrial Technologies from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $285.00 to $315.00 in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. StockNews.com lowered Applied Industrial Technologies from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Robert W. Baird raised their target price on Applied Industrial Technologies from $250.00 to $275.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Raymond James reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $265.00 target price (up previously from $250.00) on shares of Applied Industrial Technologies in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Applied Industrial Technologies currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $291.43.

Insider Transactions at Applied Industrial Technologies

In other news, VP Warren E. Hoffner III sold 4,000 shares of Applied Industrial Technologies stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $281.64, for a total transaction of $1,126,560.00. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 55,709 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $15,689,882.76. This trade represents a 6.70 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Mary Dean Hall sold 2,200 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $275.08, for a total value of $605,176.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 3,462 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $952,326.96. This trade represents a 38.86 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.67% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.