Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:AIT) Short Interest Down 12.9% in March

Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:AIT) was the recipient of a significant decrease in short interest in the month of March. As of March 13th, there was short interest totaling 841,915 shares, a decrease of 12.9% from the February 26th total of 966,402 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 278,084 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 3.0 days. Approximately 2.3% of the company’s stock are short sold.

Applied Industrial Technologies Trading Down 1.2%

Shares of AIT stock opened at $257.62 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $9.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.50 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a current ratio of 3.68, a quick ratio of 2.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31. The business’s 50 day moving average is $272.81 and its two-hundred day moving average is $263.77. Applied Industrial Technologies has a twelve month low of $199.96 and a twelve month high of $296.70.

Applied Industrial Technologies (NYSE:AIT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 27th. The industrial products company reported $2.51 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.48 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $1.16 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.17 billion. Applied Industrial Technologies had a return on equity of 21.74% and a net margin of 8.49%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.39 earnings per share. Applied Industrial Technologies has set its FY 2026 guidance at 10.450-10.750 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Applied Industrial Technologies will post 9.9 EPS for the current year.

Applied Industrial Technologies Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 13th were issued a $0.51 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 13th. This is a positive change from Applied Industrial Technologies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.8%. Applied Industrial Technologies’s payout ratio is presently 19.41%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Neil A. Schrimsher sold 19,207 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $285.85, for a total transaction of $5,490,320.95. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 130,528 shares in the company, valued at approximately $37,311,428.80. The trade was a 12.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP Jason W. Vasquez sold 5,447 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $287.87, for a total value of $1,568,027.89. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president directly owned 14,491 shares in the company, valued at $4,171,524.17. This trade represents a 27.32% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 28,654 shares of company stock worth $8,212,829 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in AIT. Hsbc Holdings PLC lifted its position in Applied Industrial Technologies by 85.4% in the fourth quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 33,807 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $8,733,000 after purchasing an additional 15,572 shares during the period. Corient Private Wealth LLC increased its position in Applied Industrial Technologies by 18.8% during the 4th quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 3,085 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $794,000 after purchasing an additional 489 shares during the period. Clearwave Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies during the 4th quarter worth approximately $316,000. Anchor Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies during the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Finally, BDFS Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Industrial Technologies in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $392,000. 93.52% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. KeyCorp upped their price objective on Applied Industrial Technologies from $300.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 26th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Applied Industrial Technologies in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded Applied Industrial Technologies from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, March 21st. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $294.38.

About Applied Industrial Technologies

Applied Industrial Technologies, listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol AIT, is a leading distributor of industrial products and services. The company offers a comprehensive range of bearings, power transmission components, fluid power products, industrial rubber products, and automation solutions. Through its network of distribution centers and branch locations, Applied Industrial Technologies serves diverse end markets including manufacturing, oil and gas, mining, food and beverage, and wastewater treatment.

Founded in 1923 and headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio, Applied Industrial Technologies has grown through a combination of organic expansion and strategic acquisitions.