Sapient Capital LLC Buys New Shares in Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:AIT)

Sapient Capital LLC bought a new stake in Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:AIT) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 1,859 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $321,000.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in AIT. FinTrust Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Applied Industrial Technologies during the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Point72 Middle East FZE acquired a new stake in Applied Industrial Technologies during the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. State of Wyoming acquired a new stake in Applied Industrial Technologies during the 4th quarter worth about $29,000. Huntington National Bank grew its position in Applied Industrial Technologies by 963.2% during the 3rd quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 202 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 183 shares during the period. Finally, NBC Securities Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies during the 3rd quarter worth about $40,000. 93.52% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AIT has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Oppenheimer started coverage on shares of Applied Industrial Technologies in a research note on Tuesday, April 2nd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $235.00 target price on the stock. KeyCorp raised their target price on shares of Applied Industrial Technologies from $195.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday. Five analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $201.00.

Insider Activity at Applied Industrial Technologies

In other Applied Industrial Technologies news, VP Warren E. Hoffner III sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $182.34, for a total value of $364,680.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 57,155 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,421,642.70. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 2.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Applied Industrial Technologies Stock Down 0.9 %

Shares of NYSE AIT opened at $191.09 on Monday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $189.96 and a 200-day simple moving average of $173.71. The company has a market capitalization of $7.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.05, a P/E/G ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 3.74 and a quick ratio of 2.59. Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. has a 1 year low of $122.24 and a 1 year high of $201.76.

Applied Industrial Technologies (NYSE:AIT) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, January 25th. The industrial products company reported $2.24 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.11 by $0.13. Applied Industrial Technologies had a net margin of 8.39% and a return on equity of 24.59%. The firm had revenue of $1.08 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.06 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.05 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts predict that Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. will post 9.49 earnings per share for the current year.

Applied Industrial Technologies Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 29th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 15th were issued a $0.37 dividend. This represents a $1.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.77%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 14th. This is an increase from Applied Industrial Technologies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.35. Applied Industrial Technologies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 15.53%.

Applied Industrial Technologies 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.