Van ECK Associates Corp Boosts Stake in Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:AIT)

Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its position in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:AIT) by 44.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 11,181 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 3,424 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp’s holdings in Applied Industrial Technologies were worth $1,931,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Huntington National Bank increased 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 worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 183 shares during the last quarter. NBC Securities Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies in the 3rd quarter worth about $40,000. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies during the 4th quarter valued at about $54,000. GAMMA Investing LLC bought a new position in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies in the 4th quarter valued at about $86,000. Finally, Consolidated Planning Corp purchased a new position in Applied Industrial Technologies in the fourth quarter worth about $209,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.52% of the company’s stock.

Applied Industrial Technologies Stock Up 0.1 %

Shares of AIT stock opened at $193.97 on Thursday. Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $122.24 and a fifty-two week high of $201.76. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.49 billion, a PE ratio of 20.33, a P/E/G 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. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $189.70 and its 200-day simple moving average is $177.13.

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

Applied Industrial Technologies Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 31st. Shareholders 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 0.76%. Applied Industrial Technologies’s payout ratio is currently 15.51%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently issued reports on AIT. KeyCorp raised their price objective on Applied Industrial Technologies from $195.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Oppenheimer initiated coverage on 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. Five analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $201.00.

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.