Applied Industrial Technologies (NYSE:AIT) Downgraded by Wall Street Zen to Hold

Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Applied Industrial Technologies (NYSE:AIT) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report sent to investors on Saturday morning,Wall Street Zen reports.

AIT has been the subject of a number of other reports. DA Davidson lifted their price target on shares of Applied Industrial Technologies from $380.00 to $400.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 14th. Bank of America upped their price objective on shares of Applied Industrial Technologies from $380.00 to $390.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 14th. KeyCorp lowered their price objective on shares of Applied Industrial Technologies from $420.00 to $360.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday. Mizuho dropped their target price on shares of Applied Industrial Technologies from $400.00 to $390.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 15th. Finally, Robert W. Baird cut their price objective on Applied Industrial Technologies from $400.00 to $350.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $380.00.

Applied Industrial Technologies Stock Performance

NYSE AIT opened at $293.82 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $10.73 billion, a PE ratio of 26.00, a P/E/G ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a current ratio of 2.89, a quick ratio of 1.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15. Applied Industrial Technologies has a twelve month low of $238.72 and a twelve month high of $374.80. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $327.32 and a 200-day simple moving average of $309.30.

Applied Industrial Technologies (NYSE:AIT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 27th. The industrial products company reported $2.97 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.89 by $0.08. Applied Industrial Technologies had a return on equity of 22.68% and a net margin of 8.38%. The firm had revenue of $1.29 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.29 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.63 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 7.6% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that Applied Industrial Technologies will post 12.06 earnings per share for the current year.

Applied Industrial Technologies Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 30th. Investors of record on Friday, November 13th will be issued a $0.51 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 13th. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.7%. Applied Industrial Technologies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 18.05%.

Insider Activity at Applied Industrial Technologies

In other Applied Industrial Technologies news, CFO David K. Wells sold 1,812 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $355.10, for a total transaction of $643,441.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 32,050 shares in the company, valued at $11,380,955. The trade was a 5.35% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Peter C. Wallace sold 1,904 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $340.45, for a total transaction of $648,216.80. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 22,859 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,782,346.55. This represents a 7.69% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 1.60% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Applied Industrial Technologies

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of AIT. Provenance Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Applied Industrial Technologies during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $386,000. Mountain Pacific Investment Advisers LLC increased its position in Applied Industrial Technologies by 5.9% during the third quarter. Mountain Pacific Investment Advisers LLC now owns 12,720 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $4,227,000 after buying an additional 713 shares during the period. Vise Technologies Inc. lifted its stake in Applied Industrial Technologies by 22.2% in the third quarter. Vise Technologies Inc. now owns 2,658 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $883,000 after buying an additional 483 shares during the last quarter. Childress Capital Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Applied Industrial Technologies by 2.9% in the third quarter. Childress Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,999 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $664,000 after buying an additional 57 shares during the last quarter. Finally, BOKF NA lifted its stake in Applied Industrial Technologies by 0.3% in the third quarter. BOKF NA now owns 12,545 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $4,169,000 after buying an additional 37 shares during the last quarter. 93.52% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Applied Industrial Technologies Company Profile

Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc (NYSE: AIT) is a distributor and value-added service provider of industrial motion, power transmission, fluid power, automation, and control products. Its offerings include bearings, mechanical power-transmission components, motors, gearboxes, hydraulic and pneumatic equipment, industrial hoses, process pumps, safety products, and related maintenance supplies.

The company also provides technical and engineering services designed to help customers improve equipment performance, reliability, and productivity.